


Maelstrom

by ichilover3 (makasouls)



Category: Bleach
Genre: F/M, HOLY SHIT THIS TOOK FOREVER, official proof that i'm nasty, whoops
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-05
Updated: 2015-05-12
Packaged: 2018-03-29 04:27:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 29,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3882301
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makasouls/pseuds/ichilover3
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Yuzu gets dumped, Karin agrees to go with her to a host club to cheer her up. But what starts out as fun and games quickly turns serious when Karin gets sucked in further than she realized.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [adobochan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/adobochan/gifts).



> So I technically started writing this fic right after the last Rapture update. It's taken me this long to finish because I've been busy/not busy but unmotivated/slightly distracted by other prompts, and I apologize, because I found it hard to concentrate on my other fics when this one was rattling around in my brain.
> 
> Mostly, I apologize to Adobo-chan, who this fic is for, for taking forever. You have the patience of a saint, omfg. I honestly don't remember the specific reason I started writing you this fic, it's been so long, but let's just say I wrote it for you because you're amazing and such a good friend and constantly writing me smut, so you deserve some coming your way. lol I hope you enjoyed!
> 
> Just so everyone knows, while I hesitate to call this a smutfic because it has a lot more fic than smut, there is most definitely smut in this fic and it's nasty. So if that's not your thing, or you're a youngin', hit the back button real quick. This is the only warning you're going to get haha
> 
> Anyway, let's get this started~
> 
> I don't own Bleach. Though clearly, with what Kubo has been doing with it lately, I should.

When Kurosaki Karin came home from her organic chemistry class to find her twin sister a blubbering mess in their living room, she immediately knew that there was going to be hell to pay. "What's the matter?" she demanded, not even bothering to properly shut the front door of their apartment. "Yuzu, what happened?"

"He dumped me," her twin sobbed from the couch, curling further into fetal position. "Jinta broke up with me!"

Karin rushed to her sister's side in alarm. Usually fresh-faced and bright-eyed, Kurosaki Yuzu was now reduced to a blotchy, sniveling form of herself. And she had every right to be upset—she had been dating Hanakari Jinta since middle school. Karin was going to kill him. "Why?" she growled.

Yuzu sniffed, brushing a strand of her hair away from her mouth. "He said that the distance was too much." She hiccupped, tears leaking from the corners of her eyes and staining their ugly couch dark.

"Bullshit!" Karin raged, distractedly running a hand through her own dark tresses. "We're only a couple hours away from Karakura! Maybe if the asshat would get on the fucking train—"

"Karin-chan," Yuzu said softly, stopping her twin mid-rant. "Can you just…can you just sit with me?"

Karin's eyes softened. "Of  _course_ , Yuzu." She climbed onto the couch, curling up behind her sister like they were five again and shared a bed. The couch was a little too small for snuggling, but she didn't care, wrapping her arm around Yuzu's midsection so she wouldn't slip off and knock her head on the edge of their mismatched coffee table.

There was  _definitely_  going to be hell to pay.

~.~.~

For three solid days, Yuzu moped around their apartment, eating cookie dough ice cream out of the carton and sobbing at soap operas on tv. Karin was in a few of the same classes that her twin was skipping, so she merely took notes to share with her later and joined her in her moping when she got home.

It came to a surprise to her, then, when she opened the door to their apartment one day, and instead of finding Yuzu, still in pajamas and curled up in a blanket, their couch was empty. A heavenly smell wafted from the direction of their kitchen, making Karin salivate. Hurriedly taking her shoes off and dropping her backpack at the door, she followed her nose.

Yuzu looked up from her position over the stove. "Hey!" she said cheerily, stirring a pot.

Karin could only gape. Not only was her sister actually cooking them dinner, she looked better than she had in days. Her sandy-brown hair was carefully braided, her signature strawberry clip in its place. She had put on a yellow sundress and was wearing her favorite apron— _love you berry much._  All in all, she looked like the Yuzu Karin had grown up with, the one she had gotten used to.

"Dinner's almost ready," Yuzu informed her, tasting it with her spoon and adding more pepper. "I thought we could have curry tonight. It's healthier than takeout."

Takeout they had only been eating because Yuzu had been an invalid and Karin couldn't cook to save her life. "Sounds great!" she responded. "Let me just put my stuff away."

Happily bewildered at her twin's sudden turnaround, Karin made her way to the front door, sliding her backpack over her shoulders, then continued on to her room, where she unceremoniously tossed it onto her bed. By the time she returned to the kitchen, Yuzu was spooning rice onto plates.

"What brought this on?" Karin mused, gladly accepting the plate Yuzu offered her and sitting down at their small table. "Finally realized that Jinta is a waste of space and not qualified to breathe the same air as you?"

Yuzu tried to stop a smile from creeping onto her lips, but ultimately failed. "That's not nice, Karin-chan," she replied, slipping into the seat opposite hers.

Karin shrugged, scooping a spoonful of curry into her mouth. Delicious. "The truth isn't always pretty." She lifted an eyebrow, prompting an answer to her unanswered question.

Yuzu fidgeted. "Okay, but I need you to do me a favor."

Karin looked at her suspiciously. She almost demanded to know what the favor would be before she committed to it, but Yuzu would never make her do something if she really didn't want to. Plus, she didn't want to ruin her sister's mood, especially when she had just seemed to get out of her funk. "Sure."

"Narumi gave me a great idea." She grinned. "She and Makoto are taking me to a host club. Tonight."

Karin snorted. Only desperate, ugly girls went to host clubs, and Yuzu was neither. But when she saw the serious expression on Yuzu's face, she sobered up quickly. "Wait, really?"

"Yes,  _really_ ," Yuzu sniffed, puffing her cheeks out agitatedly. "I just want a man to treat me properly for once. Is that too much to ask?"

Karin had to concentrate on not gaping at her. "Of course not, Yu! But you're gorgeous and a great cook and funny and an all-around good catch. You don't need to  _pay_  for attention!"

Yuzu blushed prettily at her sister's praise. But she didn't let up. "I still think it would be fun. And I want you to come with us."

Both eyebrows shot up at that. Her, dressing up and joining a heartbroken Yuzu and her awkwardly-single girlfriends in paying the opposite sex to look her way? It had been a while since she had gotten laid, but was  _this_  what her life was coming to?

"It's really cheap the first time," Yuzu wheedled. "And there's plenty of alcohol."

Karin's interest piqued. Getting hammered on free booze while some prettyboy told her how hot she was? Sounded like a pretty solid Friday night to her. "Okay," she conceded reluctantly, taking another spoonful of her curry. "I'll go."

Yuzu squealed, wrapping her arms around Karin's neck and nuzzling her cheek affectionately. "This is going to be so fun!"

It couldn't be too bad, Karin reasoned with herself. She couldn't remember the last time she saw Yuzu so excited about something, and she couldn't help but be excited for her.

~.~.~

That night, Karin actually took the time to tame her naturally wavy hair instead of merely throwing it into its customary ponytail, and let it run free. She carefully rimmed her eyes in kohl, fanning her lashes in dark mascara. She thought about putting on her rarely-used lipstick, but decided against it, merely slipping into one of her favorite red dresses that teased a bit of cleavage and made her rear look stellar.

And, to top it all off, she slid her feet into her only good pair of fuck-me-pumps. For the first time in a long time, she looked like a hot girl ready for a night out, instead of the pre-med horror she usually portrayed.

It was an inside joke that Yuzu had gotten more of their mother's genes than Karin did, though it certainly seemed true some days. Yuzu had taken a bit more after their mother in the chest department, and though she was usually more conservative, tonight she had decided to showcase her assets in a little black dress with a plunging neckline.

"Finally decided to let those puppies breathe?" Karin teased. Yuzu merely gave her a light shove.

But even Yuzu's two friends looked like they were prepared for a night of having men fall at their feet. Overall, Karin could tell it was going to be a good night, if not memorable, and she found herself actually starting to get excited. "So," she started, addressing the group of fabulously-dressed females in her living room. "Where are we headed?"

"Here," Narumi answered, handing her a slip of paper. "I got the idea when a host handed this to me the other day. And he was kind of cute, so I figured, why not?"

"'Seireitei,'" the dark-haired twin read, briefly glancing over the group of men printed on the page. Everyone seemed attractive, even the one in the corner that was strangely bald. "Sounds good to me."

She shot a look at Yuzu, who looked the happiest she had seen her in a while. Her smile was so infectious, Karin couldn't help but smile back. "Well then." She lifted her can of Sapporo, and the others gleefully tapped theirs to hers. "Let's finish these and head out!"

~.~.~

Though she and Yuzu had moved to Tokyo for school a couple years ago, Karin had never found the time to visit the Kabukichō district in Shinjuku. Being on track for medical school meant she didn't have a lot of free time, and Kabukichō wasn't exactly the kind of place nice college girls went for fun. Every time they passed a love motel or sketchy bar, Karin couldn't help but second-guess herself. If it wasn't still kind of early, she would force her sister right back onto the subway.

Hosts from different clubs tried to get their attention, hoping to get them into their clubs. Flyers were waved, pick-up lines sent their way, but Yuzu and her friends merely smiled and kept walking. Karin reluctantly followed.

Much to her chagrin, when they finally got to Seireitei, it was the gaudiest thing she had ever seen. It was much gaudier than every other host club they had passed that night, which only made Karin assume it was the most popular. Multiple blinking lightbulbs burned her retinas, the lights dancing in an inviting manner. The side of the building was covered in photographs of the hosts, and though they were all admittedly handsome and obviously knew their way around a can of hairspray, Karin found her eyes being drawn to the host in the number one slot, his shock of white hair commanding attention.

"What is this, a menu?" she cracked incredulously. "I'll take the number five with fries, hold the mayo?"

Yuzu's grin seemed to morph from cute and innocent to something more sinister. Karin couldn't tell if it was a trick of the light. "I think tonight is going to be  _very_ fun."

The surprises kept coming. After entering the establishment, Karin was astounded to find it even more gaudy than outside. Multicolored lightbulbs were everywhere she could see, giving the place a definite party-vibe. There were three chandeliers in the entrance alone, and everything seemed to be bordered in gold. It was all decidedly worse than a casino. And, unexpectedly, it was a busty blond woman that rushed to greet them.

"Welcome, ladies!" she gushed. Her breasts were so large, her top so low-cut, that Karin had a hard time focusing on her face. "You look like fresh meat. I hope you're ready to have a memorable night!"

Karin gave Narumi a sideways glance. "Are you sure this isn't a  _hostess_  club?" she murmured under her breath.

The other girls seemed just as baffled, but the woman apparently heard her, because she started laughing, her blue-gray eyes twinkling in mirth. "Don't worry," she assured them, "I'm just the bartender-slash-hostess. There are plenty of hot men here just waiting to lavish you with attention. How about we get you seated?"

They trailed after her, passing a few filled tables along the way. One of them erupted in laughter, and Karin caught a glimpse of a bold customer sliding her hand up her host's thigh. Her host, who looked like he was yazuka and was inexplicably wearing sunglasses inside, despite the dim lighting. Alarm bells rang in Karin's head, and for the second time that night, she sincerely considered cutting their adventure short.

"Hey!" the hostess barked, though there was laughter in her voice. "Watch it, Kiyone."

The customer merely stuck her tongue out, laughing harder.

"You know," Karin said in her twin's ear, "I know you're upset about Jinta, but we could just leave right now and do normal break-up things. Listen to Adele on repeat. Get a dog. Hell, I'll even help you egg his house."

Yuzu rolled her eyes. "He still lives with Urahara-san," she reminded her. "Do you really want to get on Yoruichi-san's bad side?"

She started to say that intentionally provoking Yoruichi was  _probably_  a better idea than what they were doing now, but the blond hostess shuffled them into their designated area and handed them all what looked like menus. A peek inside confirmed it—though instead of food, the same photos from outside smoldered at her. She couldn't stop her jaw from dropping at the pure absurdity of it.

The hostess noticed her reaction and grinned. "My name is Matsumoto Rangiku, and I'll be your server for tonight," she joked. "May I recommend number eleven? Very tasty." She winked, letting them know she was obviously kidding. Which was just as well, as Karin was pretty sure number eleven was a drag queen, if his lavender hair and feathered eyelashes were any indication.

"I think I like number nine," Yuzu responded, making her friends titter excitedly.

"Really, Yuzu?" An eyebrow raised in disbelief. "You really want to spend your evening with a guy who has the number  _sixty-nine_  tattooed on his face?"

That not-so-innocent look on her face returned. "Sounds like a good time to me."

Karin merely shook her head, a smile tugging at her lips. Couldn't argue with that.

Matsumoto nodded approvingly. "Anyone else?"

While Yuzu's friends made up their minds, Karin gave the man-menu a more thorough run-through. They were obviously not leaving anytime soon, so she might as well get with the program. Besides, she mused to herself as she focused on a promising-looking redhead with multiple tattoos, maybe Yuzu was onto something with the face tattoo thing.

The hostess seemed to notice where her attention lay. "I'm sorry," she told Karin, regretful. "Unfortunately, Baboon King is attending to one of his regulars tonight."

"Baboon King," Karin repeated, trying to keep her tone nonjudgmental. For such a gorgeous man, he sure did pick a ridiculous name.

"I know, right?" Matsumoto rolled her eyes. "I told him it was stupid, but he wouldn't listen.  _Men_."

At the very least, Karin could tell the night wouldn't be all that bad. She was really starting to like this Matsumoto person.

"Can I interest you in anyone else?"

She scanned the profiles again, sighing as no one jumped off the page. She glanced at Yuzu awkwardly. "Um…"

The blonde held up a hand. "You know what? Don't even worry about it. I have the perfect person for you, if you don't mind."

Karin merely blinked in response. Why the hell not? It wasn't like she knew what was going on anymore anyway.

Matsumoto smirked, marking something on her notepad. Karin watched with astonishment as, after getting the "orders" of Yuzu's friends, both pen and notepad were shoved into the bartender-slash-hostess's ample cleavage, never to be seen again. "You ladies will be in great hands," she said cheerily, as if there wasn't a black hole between her breasts. "But if you need anything else, just holler."

As Matsumoto sauntered away, their table could do nothing but watch her in silence.

As usual, it was Karin who broke it. "Is this real life?"

Yuzu pouted. "Come  _on_ , Karin-chan. You've been a party-pooper all night."

She felt a twinge of guilt. "I'm sorry, Yu. But this is so ridiculous—"

"We are all well aware of the absurdity," she responded coolly. "But that's what'll make it memorable. That's what'll make it fun. And I can really use some fun. So can you stop with the negative energy, please?"

Karin exhaled slowly through her nose, thoroughly scolded. "You're right. I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Yuzu patted her knee reassuringly. "Just relax, okay? Try to have fun."

It was during the moments that Karin was trying to convince herself to  _take a chill pill already_ that three stunning men approached them. One of them was very clearly Yuzu's pick. Sixty-nine guy was hotter in person than on paper, especially when he threw them all a mega-watt smile. "You rang?" he said saucily, sliding right into the seat on Yuzu's other side.

"Damn," Makoto muttered, much too loudly. Narumi's eyes were as big as saucers.

Yuzu beamed. Karin couldn't blame her.

It seemed that Narumi had decided to heed Matsumoto's advice, and had chosen number eleven. While he was dressed sharply in a suit like his fellow hosts, flamboyance rolled off of him in waves. It appeared he enjoyed accessorizing both his eyebrows and eyelashes with feathers so long they hadn't fit in his photo. "You're looking beautiful tonight," he told Narumi as he elegantly sat in the seat beside hers.

Karin debated informing the girl of her host's probable homosexual tendencies, but decided against it as she watched her swoon. Obviously, she was into that kind of thing.

She recognized the remaining host as the bald one from the flier and thought he might be for her, but he headed straight for Makoto. Unable to stop the slight annoyance that bloomed in her belly, Karin anxiously tapped her fingernails on the tabletop. She could have handled Baldy. But who could that Matsumoto chick have possibly dumped on her? The suspense was making her antsy.

"Welcome."

The husky voice startled her, and she quickly turned to the side.

He was shorter than the other hosts, though that didn't make him any less attractive. His suit was tailored perfectly to his slim frame, and his hair was as shockingly white as it had been when she had first seen it outside. Karin could only gape as he dipped in a rather formal bow. "Thank you for choosing me."

She forced her jaw shut, her teeth audibly clacking. "I didn't pick you."

He looked at her stonily, a single snowy eyebrow betraying his bafflement.

A sharp pain in her side briefly diverted her attention back to Yuzu, who had apparently jabbed her with a bony elbow.  _Stop_ , her twin was obviously saying. But Karin couldn't seem to stop the words from rolling off her tongue. "I actually chose Baboon King. Though I didn't know he called himself Baboon King, or I obviously would have reconsidered."

His lips quirked. "Obviously," he agreed.

It had to be illegal for his eyes to be that blue. How were they that blue? She could probably swim in them if she tried. "How did I get you, anyway? Aren't you number one?"

"I'm currently number one, yes. It's a slow night, so I'm free. And I tend to get the difficult clients." He sort of smiled at her again. "Any more questions?"

Karin was momentarily stunned mute. She was  _not_  difficult! Wary of the whole situation, maybe, but certainly not difficult enough to warrant being given the top host in the club, who apparently became that way by being able to pacify rude women. Hackles raised, she looked at him sharply. "Aren't you supposed to give me drinks or something?"

"Of course," he said, a little too placatingly for her tastes. "What would you like?"

"Well, what do you have?"

"This table is on the unlimited plan," he informed her. "Which means you get cheap beer, cheap shochu, or water."

She bit her lip, halting a smile before it crept onto her lips. She would not be amused by him. She would not allow him to play her like a fiddle, no matter how refreshing she found his blunt manner. "Cheap shochu. On the rocks."

He inclined his head, then left the table to order her drink. The other hosts took his cue, leaving them alone again.

Yuzu elbowed her again, though this time she was obviously excited. "Your host is super hot," she informed her. As if Karin didn't have eyes.

"His picture didn't do him justice," Makoto added forlornly. "If I had known—"

Karin huffed. "Yeah, well he's obviously a cocky little shit."

"But does that really matter, Karin?" Yuzu looked at her pointedly. " _Does it?"_

"Yes!" Though as the men came back with their drinks and she watched her host walk towards her, the air around him practically sparkling, she became less certain.

Her host slid into the seat next to hers, placing a bottle of shochu on the table in front of her, as well as two glasses filled with ice. "It's interesting. Most customers choose the beer."

Karin shrugged. "Yeah, well, I'm not like most customers."

He raised an eyebrow inquisitively. "Really."

"Really." She watched as he poured shochu into her glass, and instinctively reached for the bottle to return the favor.

He gently pushed her hands away, filling his own glass. "I'm here to serve  _you_ , remember?"

She wasn't used to this, and almost told him so. Instead, she took a swig of her drink to help swallow her apology. It trailed warmly down her throat. Cheap indeed.

"What's your name?" he asked, taking a sip from his own glass.

Her eyes narrowed. "What's yours?"

His lips quirked. "Taicho."

"Taicho," she repeated, baffled. He may have been the club's top earner, but how highly did he think of himself? "What the hell are you the captain of?"

"I didn't choose it," he responded, refilling both their glasses. Karin was surprised they had finished their first ones so quickly. "Matsumoto, the bartender, called me that when I first started. It stuck." He looked at her pointedly. "And you…?"

"I…" She was struck by sudden inspiration by her dress. "I'm Red. Karakura Red."

The amusement was evident in his tone. "Karakura Red."

"Childhood nickname," she explained vaguely.

"Well then, Red." He lifted his glass, and she did the same, clinking them together. "Nice to meet you."

Karin smirked, taking a deep sip from her glass. "The pleasure is all mine."

Taicho followed suit, easily draining the contents and reaching for the bottle again. He topped hers off, then refilled his. "So, Red. You mentioned not being like most customers."

Karin gasped dramatically, a hand over her heart. "You don't believe me?"

"I have a lot of customers," he replied, his tone feigning apologetic.

" _Well_ , sir." The alcohol was definitely loosening her up, tongue especially. "Aside from the fact that I did not choose you, I also did not choose to come to this fine establishment tonight."

Actual surprise crossed his features. "Really."

She leaned in closer to him, subtly inclining her head towards Yuzu. "My sister had a bad breakup, and now she's kinda going through some stuff." A glance at her sister showed that Yuzu was too busy flirting with her host to pay them any attention.

Taicho nodded in understanding. "So you're here for support."

"Exactly." This close, she could see the flecks of green in his eyes, could see that even his eyelashes were white. She frowned. "How do you get your hair that color?"

"It grows that way," he told her so matter-of-factly that she knew he got the question often.

"Huh." She reached for the shochu bottle, and Taicho was too baffled to stop her this time.

"You aren't surprised?"

She shrugged, emptying the remainder of the bottle into their glasses. "My brother's natural hair color is orange. Hey, are you going to get us another bottle or what?"

"It's empty already?" he asked in bewilderment.

Karin grinned. "You know, Taicho, Baboon King wouldn't have pointed out my alcoholic tendencies."

"Baboon King would have been passed out by now," he retorted. "And don't worry. I was referring to  _my_  alcoholic tendencies, not yours."

"Well." She downed the rest of her drink, chewing on a few ice chunks and simpering. "Aren't we a pair."

He stood, lips upturned. "Aren't we."

~.~.~

Two and a half bottles of shochu in, Karin couldn't deny it—she was having a great time. Of course, she was so intoxicated that that wasn't a hard feat, but Taicho was admittedly good company. She found him easy to talk to, as they seemed to share the same dry sense of humor (and strange affinity for terrible liquor). It was possible that said liquor had merely mellowed them both out, but she didn't linger on it too much. Instead, she laughed as her red-faced sister engaged in a two-person conga line with her tattooed host.

Taicho placed light fingers on her arm to get her attention, and she jumped like she had touched a live wire. He snorted, a decent amount of color on his own face. "Red, I just wanted to ask if you wanted to do karaoke."

Karin took another sip of shochu to mask her embarrassment. "You want to do karaoke?"

"Definitely not," he responded firmly. "But I'm supposed to ask. And I will if you want me to. You paid for it."

Unbidden, the memory of the customer, hand on her host's thigh and going up  _up_  came to her. Tipsily, she wondered just what else she had purchased.

Narumi bounded over, grabbing Karin by the arm and attempting to lift her from her seat. "It's time to go," she announced. "If we stay any longer, we'll have to pay double."

Karin looked at the girl's watch, mystified at how quickly the time had disappeared. She had expected for the night to drag on, but it was already over. Shrugging the other girl off, she stood on her own, the sudden movement making her dizzy.

Taicho stood as well, steadying her as she regained her balance. "You can't leave," he told her, baffled.

Karin's eyebrows furrowed. "Is that a rule no one told us? That once you've entered a host club, you can never leave?"

"No, it's not that. It's just…" He was visibly flustered. It was adorable. "I'm supposed to ask you for your number before you leave."

She snickered. "Smooth, Casanova. Is that how you ask all your other women?"

He flushed. "Not usually."

"Well I guess I'm  _not_  like most of your customers, am I." She swayed a bit in her heels. "What are you going to do with it? Spam me until I come back?"

"Normally, yes," he admitted. "But you're not like most of my customers. So I'll probably just send you trivia facts or coupons for frozen yogurt or something."

Karin burst out laughing, earning a genuine smile from him. He was still holding her arm, and though she thought about shrugging him off, just as she had Narumi, she found herself liking the strangely cool touch of his fingers. "Why not," she mused aloud, taking his proffered pen and, to everyone's surprise, scrawling her actual phone number across the back of his hand. "I like frozen yogurt."

He didn't take his hand back right away, so Karin reluctantly retracted hers. "Well, we should get going."

He nodded, almost thoughtfully, and then he and the other hosts led them all back to the entrance. While the rest of her party thanked their hosts happily, Karin cleared her throat, strangely unsure of what to say. "Well, I guess I'll see ya around, Taicho."

His almost-smile was back. "Goodnight, Red."

They left then. All the way back to the subway, Yuzu and her friends tittered, properly buzzed. "That was fun, right?" the light-haired twin asked, linking her arm through Karin's.

"Surprisingly, yes," she admitted.

Yuzu sighed happily. "I'm so glad you had fun."

"I just wish we could have stayed longer," Makoto groaned.

It wasn't until she was halfway home that Karin realized she still had the pen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pervy!Yuzu is canon get it right get it right get it tight
> 
> *hardcore stans for pervy!Yuzu*


	2. Chapter 2

"That was fun, wasn't it?" It was the same question Yuzu had drunkenly asked her the night before, but the host club was clearly still on her mind, even the next morning.

Karin chewed her cheese eggs slowly, musing. She was nursing a decent hangover, and a greasy breakfast always seemed to do the trick. "It was," she acknowledged again, taking a sip of orange juice and inwardly reveling in the liquid energy.

Yuzu distractedly twirled her fork in her own eggs. "So…you would be willing to do it again?"

Karin stopped chewing. "What?"

"You just said it was fun," her twin huffed defensively. "And that was the most fun I've had in a while. I don't see why we can't go back tonight."

" _Tonight_ ," Karin repeated incredulously. "Yuzu, how do you know I don't have anything planned?"

Yuzu batted her eyelashes. "Because you never have anything planned. And because you're the best sister ever, I know you'll come with me."

Well, she had her there. Her evening plans consisted of relaxing on the couch and watching some shitty straight-to-tv movie in her pajamas.

" _Please_ , Karin-chan?" She bit her lip. Yuzu had mastered puppy-eyes, and it was very hard for anyone to say no to her when she looked at them with those big, sad, doe eyes. It just wasn't fair. "Scar-san gave me a discount."

"Scar? Your  _host_  from  _last night_ , Scar? Yuzu, it's still cheaper to go to another club."

The fork-twirling continued. "I know it is! But I really liked that one, and I'm afraid if we go to another one, it won't be as the same."

Just then, Karin's phone buzzed, making a loud rattling sound against the table. Distractedly, she glanced at the screen.

_Did you know that all polar bears are left-handed?_

She couldn't stop the smile from overtaking her visage, even against her better judgment.

"Karin?"

She bit her lip, glanced back to her sister. "Sure, Yuzu. Why not."

Arms wrapped around her neck, and Yuzu nuzzled her hair gratefully. "Thank you."

~.~.~

That night started much like the one before, with the both of them getting all dolled up, waiting for Yuzu's friends to arrive. There was a distinct difference though—instead of trepidation, this time, Karin felt excitement, no matter how much she tried to tramp it down. As she slipped into a short black dress that showcased the long, toned legs she got from years of soccer-playing, she couldn't help but think of the white-haired host with shockingly blue eyes.

If she got dressed with a little more care than the night before, no one would know, and she would never admit it. Her hair, in its natural state of loose waves, was placed into its signature high-ponytail. Her eyes were lightly lined in black, her lashes fanned with mascara. And, after a spark of inspiration, she painted her lips fire-engine-red, a nod to last night's dress and her newfound moniker. After accessorizing simply with a pair of stud earrings and borrowing Yuzu's nude-colored pumps, she met her sister in the living room, where only Narumi waited.

"Where's Makoto?" Karin asked confusedly.

"She said she has to study," Narumi answered, rolling her eyes as if the three of them shouldn't have been doing the same thing.

"You look nice," Yuzu smirked, eyebrows raised pointedly. "Happy to see your host again?"

Karin huffed, ignoring the warming of her cheeks. "Not particularly. What about you? I see the girls are out to play again."

Yuzu looked down at her white dress, complete with strategic cutouts that allowed her cleavage to once again be on display. She grinned, unabashed. "Of course I am! Scar-san was a lot of fun."

Karin just shook her head amusedly, wondering when her sister, who went out as infrequently as she did, had acquired such a great collection of club attire. Breakups did that to a person, she guessed.

Narumi leaned towards Karin excitedly. "If you don't care about your host, can I have him?"

Karin's focus snapped to her, startled.

"My host was fun," Narumi explained, "but he was a little…girly for my tastes. And your host seemed super hot!"

She swallowed down her immediate reaction to bark "NO!" at her and smiled tightly instead. "Maybe. It depends on what other hosts are free."

"Fair," Narumi conceded, nodding sagely. She downed the rest of her beer, which Karin's stomach was still too queasy for. "Well, let's go!"

~.~.~

Walking into a host club was the last thing Karin had ever thought she'd do. But walking into the same club two nights in a row? Unbelievable. Still, it was all worth it to see her sister's shit-eating grin. Someday, the two of them would look back on this weekend fondly and laugh at the absurdity of it all, so for now, she would just try to make it memorable.

Karin wasn't the only person surprised she was back. Grey eyes wide, Matsumoto, the bartender slash hostess, ushered them to a table. "Wow! I didn't think I'd see you girls again. And definitely not so soon!"

"Well, we had so much fun last night," Yuzu gushed. "And Scar-san gave me a good deal so…"

"Scar, huh?" the blonde asked, her voice teasing. "Is that who you would like to entertain you tonight?"

Karin snorted.  _Entertain_. Like she was seeing a movie, or hiring a prostitute. Either of those options was probably kinder to her pocketbook.

Matsumoto's eyes flicked to her, but returned to Yuzu. "I would just like to inform you ladies that since this is your second visit, the host you choose tonight will entertain you for all visits going forward. Would you still like Scar?"

Yuzu nodded, unbothered, but Karin found herself taken aback by the news. It wasn't like she planned on coming back to this fine establishment anyway, but on the slim chance that Yuzu didn't get over her boyfriend-crisis soon, she really didn't want to get stuck with a host she couldn't stand. She gave Narumi an apologetic glance. "I'd like to keep my host too."

She could swear Matsumoto's eyes were glittering. "Taicho? I had a feeling you two would hit it off. And he just so happens to be free tonight." She beamed, turning to Narumi. "And would you like the same host as well?"

"No," Yuzu's friend pouted, bummed that Karin didn't relinquish her supremely hot host and scanning the menu. "I guess I'll try Baboon King this time."

"Coming right up!" the blonde sang, collecting the menus. She gave Karin a little wink and disappeared.

Yuzu caught it. "What was  _that_  about?"

"I have no idea," Karin answered, simultaneously wondering if she was unwittingly part of a love connection.

A loud cheer came from an unseen table. Though the club was more crowded than the night before, it was not by much. Karin attested it to the fact that they purposely came early to beat out the Saturday night crowds.

Narumi sighed heavily. "Hopefully this Baboon King guy is cool, since now I'm stuck with him." She side-eyed Karin. "He's who you wanted last time. Are you sure you don't want to switch?"

"I'm sure," Karin reiterated, slightly annoyed by the repeated question.

"You're sure you're sure?" a familiar voice asked. Karin turned her head, and there he was. Her host, with his stark hair and perfectly-tailored suit and pretty face. He smirked. "Because otherwise you're stuck with me."

"It's a risk I'll have to take," she replied dryly. "I know I can handle you."

"I'm sure you can handle anyone." His head tilted. "The question is, can they handle  _you_."

The strange intensity of his eyes made her fidget in her seat, uncrossing and re-crossing her legs. She wasn't quite sure what he meant by that—that she was untamable? Or that he was the only one who could keep up with her? Either way, she wasn't the only one who heard the insinuation in his tone. Yuzu's smile only widened with each word spoken between them, and Narumi was swearing under her breath in jealousy and admiration.

Karin ignored them both, clearing her throat and meeting his fierce blue gaze. "I guess time will tell."

The corners of his lips upturned, his stare only burning hotter. Then, he slipped into the seat next to hers. "I didn't really think I'd see you again."

Distractedly, she noticed the other two hosts approach the table. "I didn't really plan on  _coming_  back. But, you know, the twin's still having a crisis, and Scar gave her a good deal, so here I am."

He gave Yuzu a surprised look. "You two are twins?"

It was a reaction she was used to—while Yuzu favored their mother, Karin definitely took after their father. "Yup. Shared a womb and everything."

He stood, staring at her for a few quiet moments before nodding to himself. "I can definitely see it." Then, before a shocked Karin could ask him to clarify, "I think I can get you the same deal she's getting. What would you like to drink?"

She re-crossed her legs again, and felt a strange sort of pride to see his eyes flick down to them before returning to her face. "Whatever you have that's cheap and won't make me feel like I've been run over tomorrow morning."

He maybe-smiled at her, then followed the other hosts back to the bar.

Narumi leaned over Yuzu to gape at Karin. "Please tell me you're going to get a piece of that."

"Are you serious?" Karin hissed, embarrassed. "I just met the guy! And that's not in his job description."

"It kinda is," Yuzu piped up cheekily. "I mean, he doesn't have to, but some hosts will do it if they think it'll keep you coming to the club. So maybe…"

Karin looked at her twin, scandalized. " _Yuzu!_  Please tell me that's not why you brought us here.  _Please_  tell me we're not here so you can legally pay for some rebound booty. Please."

The light-haired girl laughed, holding up a pacifying hand. "Of course not! I was just joking."

"I wasn't!" Narumi prodded. "I think he's totally into you, Karin. If you wanted to, he would probably go for it."

"It's kinda his  _job_ to make me believe he's into me," Karin pointed out, irritated. "Besides, I don't even know where he's been." Across the room, she could see their hosts make their way back to the table, drinks in hand. "Drop it," she hissed to her companions, glaring for further effect. Yuzu rolled her eyes, while Narumi mumbled about wasted opportunities.

The hosts sauntered up to the table, looking everything like menswear models. For the first time, Karin saw Baboon King in the flesh, and she had to admit, he was almost majestic in his rugged beauty. He was extremely tall, towering over Taicho and clearing Scar by at least a few inches. His long hair, a brilliant red, was tied into a high ponytail, much like Karin's own. And the tattoos that covered his temple and seemed to trail down his neck and below the collar of his shirt looked elegant and tribal, not gang. He definitely seemed like someone she would have been happy with had he not been busy that first night.

Still, despite all the things about Baboon King that enticed her, she found herself instead drawn to her own host. She wasn't the least bit disappointed with how things turned out. And as he sat a bottle of inexpensive champagne in front of her, she was horrified to still hear Narumi's words floating in her head.

"Champagne?" she croaked, before clearing her throat and trying again. "Classing it up, are we?"

"Of course," he replied, producing two champagne flutes and filling them each nearly to the top. "A classy drink for a classy lady."

Karin snorted, taking the proffered glass from him. "Ugh, that was so cheesy."

A snowy eyebrow went up, amused. He sat down beside her. "Too much?"

She laughed, almost accidently inhaling her beverage. "That shit doesn't work on me, so you can stop wasting your time."

He took a sip of champagne, visibly mulling over her words. "Well, you could make my life easier and just tell me what  _does_  work."

"And why would I do that?" she grinned, taking a sip as well. The drink was surprisingly good for being so cheap; it was sweet, and the effervescence teased her tongue pleasantly.

"Well, you did choose me two nights in a row," Taicho pointed out. "And you still chose me after knowing I would be your host for future visits. So I don't think it's too far a stretch to assume you want me to sweep you off your feet."

She was smiling so hard her face was beginning to hurt, but she couldn't make herself stop. And she couldn't make herself feel that embarrassed about it. "Really."

"Really."

"Well I'll have you know that there is a very good reason I chose you again," she countered, digging into the small clutch she brought to hold her id and money. She held up the pen, twirling it between her fingers. "I wanted to give this back to you."

He blinked slowly. "You wanted to give me back a pen."

Karin nodded sagely. "Let it be known that Karakura Red is not a thief."

Taicho took the offered pen, his eyes betraying his mirth. "You've stolen my heart," he told her, unable to keep the laughter from his voice.

She laughed right along with him. "Oh god, that is just so  _bad_!" she giggled into her glass. "Does that actually work on women?"

"You'd be surprised," he replied dryly. He held out the bottle to top off her glass, and after she accepted, refilled his own. "So if that doesn't work on you, what does?"

Karin shrugged, coy. "Aren't you supposed to be the top host of the club? Shouldn't you be able to figure it out?"

He regarded her silently for a few moments, then admitted, "You're an enigma. You said yourself that you aren't like my other customers."

She ceded him that point, deciding to throw him a bone. What did she like in men? "…I like intelligent guys," she yielded.

"I graduated high school when I was fourteen," Taicho revealed. "Does that count?"

Karin snorted. "Oh, come on. Really?" But when she saw the seriousness of his expression, she realized he wasn't joking. "Wait, seriously?"

"I even had a chance to study at a top university in America." He looked away, embarrassed. "I don't tell many people that."

Karin wondered what it meant that she was one of the few he had decided to confess that to. In spite of herself, she was majorly impressed, and admittedly confused. "That's amazing! But…why are you here? What happened?"

He shrugged noncommittally. "Life."

It was a strange feeling, realizing that he was more than pretty words and a pretty face—that he was actually a complex individual who allowed himself to be reduced to a women's plaything. It was jarring, and Karin downed the rest of her drink, feeling the mood shift. "Well, you shared. It's only fair that I share something personal too." She cleared her throat. "When I was two years old, my mother took my brother to the grocery store. She collapsed on the sidewalk and was dead days later. Cancer." She shifted in her seat. "Ain't life a bitch."

He nodded in agreement, noticing that the bottle between them was empty. "Same thing?"

She shook her head. "How about something a little stronger this time."

He came back with a higher-grade shochu than the night before, and though Karin heard her wallet crying, she was too buzzed to care. Together, they got shitfaced.

~.~.~

It had been a long time since Karin had gone out two nights in a row, so she spent the next day in bed, cursing her alcoholic tendencies and feeling disgusting. Yuzu, bless her heart, came into her room multiple times to offer her assistance. She wasn't nearly as hungover as Karin; she and Scar had challenged Narumi and Baboon King to a karaoke sing-off that had gotten fairly intense, and instead of joining in, Karin and Taicho drank through another full bottle of shochu, watching the battle in companionable silence.

After that, Karin spent the next few days going to classes and trying to play catch-up on the studying she had forgone that weekend. Still, she couldn't help but notice that Taicho hadn't tried to get in contact with her—no random animal facts, no frozen yogurt coupons, nothing.

She wasn't sure why this bothered her. It wasn't like she ever planned on going back to Seireitei, especially now that it was costing her an arm and a leg, and Taicho probably knew that, and figured he wasn't going to waste his time. Not to mention the last time they were together, she hit him with the dead mother talk. Dead mother talk always killed the mood.

Despite logically knowing it was absurd to hope her phone would vibrate, Karin found herself almost obsessively watching it one day as she "studied" biochem. She was curled in a corner booth of her favorite campus café, her textbook and notes spread in front of her, completely unable to concentrate. Her eyes would scan the pages, unwilling to retain the information, and instead focus on her phone's lack of activity. When it did vibrate and she scrambled to pick it up, only to discover that it was just Yuzu asking what they should have for dinner, she was more than mortified at her rash reaction.

It was getting ridiculous. She needed to get over it and move on with her life, maybe meet a nice boy who wasn't being paid to be interested in her. Still, she watched with horror as, almost as if possessed, her fingers crawled to her phone, opened her contacts, and started jumping across the screen.

_You know, I distinctly remember being promised frozen yogurt._

Her thumb hit  _send_ , and her heart thudded noisily in her ears. Her fingers rapped the table anxiously, eyes focused on her phone, before she forced herself to put it down and get back to her work, scoffing. This was silly! Why was she trying to contact a guy who wouldn't give her the time of day if he knew she wouldn't pay any more? Yes, he was attractive, and yes, he charming and fun to be around, but she basically  _paid_  him to be so!

Her phone vibrated and she practically lunged at it, embarrassingly scattering a few pages of her notes onto the floor. Karin scrambled to pick up the papers, the diagramed molecules a blur. Then, after a few steadying breaths, she glanced at her cell.

_What if I made us a cake for dessert? :D_

For a few seconds, she was thrown, not exactly sure how to answer that. But then she noticed that it was actually Yuzu who had sent it, and sighed.

_That sounds gre—_

The phone vibrated in her hands mid-reply, a text briefly appearing at the top of her screen before disappearing again. Karin quickly exited out of Yuzu's message, seeing a text from Taicho sitting in her inbox, ready to be opened. She paused for only a few seconds before tapping on it.

_Sorry—I've been really busy. What are you doing now?_

She looked blankly at the textbook in front of her.

_Nothing. Why?_

The answer came only a few moments later.  _I have a buy one get one free coupon._

_So send it to me._

_Or I could just meet you._

Karin wasn't sure how to respond to that. Meet with a host?  _Outside of the club?_  Just so he could buy her ice cream. That sounded awfully date-like to her. Who in their right mind  _dated_  a host?

Her phone buzzed again.  _I happen to like frozen yogurt as well._

She unnecessarily cleared her throat.  _So really what you're saying is that you're buying yourself an ice cream and are willing to give me your free one._

_Of course not, I'm a gentleman. Mine will be the free one. Yours will be paid for._

She snorted, rapping her fingers on the table again as she thought. Really, what was the harm? It was the middle of the day and there were plenty of people around, so it wasn't like he could drag her off somewhere and murder her. She had no intention of giving him anymore of her nonexistent money, so as soon as he got a whiff of that, he'd probably stop paying attention to her. She might as well get some free ice cream while it was being offered.

Mind made up, she sent her consent, as well as her location. When he sent a smiley face in reply, she couldn't help but snort again.

He was a smooth one.

~.~.~

To her surprise, it only took him fifteen minutes to make it to the café. Even more to her surprise, she didn't recognize him right away. She was still valiantly trying to look over her notes when who she thought was a random dude came up to her, hands in the pockets of his skinny jeans.

"Can I help you?" she asked, slightly annoyed. "If you're waiting on this table—"

"I'm waiting on  _you_ ," a familiar, gravelly voice replied.

Her jaw dropped, and she forced herself to shut it with a clack. Gone were the fancy dancy suits; instead, he was dressed in a black t-shirt and a gray, close-fitting zip up sweatshirt. His signature hair was mostly hidden by an emerald beanie, his startling eyes camouflaged by the large black glasses he wore.

Karin's mouth was dry. "You look different," she hedged cautiously.

He looked amused by her reaction, casually sliding into the booth across from her. "So do you."

It was then that she remembered what she looked like—dressed comfortably in her Tokyo U sweatpants and an old t-shirt from her high school soccer team, her face bare and her long hair impatiently styled in a loose topknot. It was a far cry from what he was used to seeing her look like. "I was studying," she said in way of explanation. Not mentioning that that was how she looked most of the time. "I didn't know you wore glasses."

"They're mostly for reading," he responded, pushing the glasses in question further up his nose. "But I'm fairly recognizable in the city. They help disguise me."

Karin scoffed. "What are you, some celebrity?"

"I'm the top host at the top host club in the city." He looked at her pointedly.

She imagined him getting swarmed everywhere he went by desperate, horny women, and would have laughed if she didn't feel so unsure about this whole situation. It was weird talking to him completely sober. And while the sun was still out, for that matter. Karin tried not to fidget. "The hat too?"

Only a few tufts of his white hair showed under the hat, hiding another distinguishing feature, but Taicho shook his head. "I like the hat."

"I like it too," she blurted before immediately wanting to punch herself in the face.

Taicho did his kinda-smile at her, then slid one of her notebooks his way. "What are you studying?"

"Biochemistry." She tried to tramp down the warmness in her cheeks. "I'm pre-med."

He glanced at her messy shorthand, flipping through the diagrams. "Huh."

Karin plucked the notebook back out of his hands. "I'll let you know the next time I need a study buddy, but right now, what I really need is some froyo."

"Fair enough." He stood, watching as she hurriedly gathered her things. When she was ready, he asked, "Any particular place you have in mind?"

Karin glanced at him over her shoulder. "I thought you had a coupon for a place."

"About that," he started, holding the door open for her, red creeping up his neck. "I don't actually have one."

Karin blinked for a moment, then grinned as the implications of what he said sunk in. "That's too bad," she said airily. "Guess you'll have to just watch me eat mine."

A mildly irritated look passed over his face. "I can pay for two."

"Oh, wow." She playfully elbowed him lightly in the side. "We've got a big spender over here!"

He didn't respond, instead walking past her almost sulkily. He reminded her of a huffy child. It was adorable.

Karin grinned. Taicho was completely different when his livelihood didn't depend on his demeanor. She was deeply enjoying discovering his true personality. "Don't be that way," she laughed, catching up to him and knocking his hip with hers. His eyes widened at the familiar contact. "I was just joking. You didn't even have to come all the way out here anyway, so thank you."

He was gradually pinking again. He rubbed the back of his neck. "It's not a problem. I live in the area."

"You do?" Karin asked, surprised.

"You didn't think I lived in the club, did you?" he asked, giving her an amused sidelong look.

"Not that you lived there. Just that you ceased to exist outside of it."

He raised a brow.

"You know," she elaborated with a smirk. "Like teachers don't have lives outside of schools."

His lips quirked. "It certainly feels like it sometimes. I didn't even wake up until half an hour ago."

This time Karin raised a brow. "It's three thirty."

"And I didn't get to bed until six this morning," he pointed out. "I worked last night. Your text woke me up."

"Oh. Sorry."

"It's fine. I needed to get up anyway." He paused, sliding his hands into his pockets and looking at the sky thoughtfully. "Although according to you, I don't exist outside of the club. So I'm probably hibernating in some giant test tube in Seireitei's basement, dreaming all of this."

"And do you dream of me often?" Karin cracked. "Sounds like sweet dreams."

"Or beautiful nightmares," he mused.

For a split second, she thought about calling him out again for being so cheesy. But then she blinked, stopping dead in her tracks. "Did you seriously just make a Beyoncé reference?"

He looked slightly embarrassed again, but also like he was going to laugh. "You don't become successful at a club without familiarizing yourself with Beyoncé."

Karin burst out laughing. "It's like I don't even know you at all," she said affectionately. She paused for a moment, then circled her fingers around his wrist and led him away. "Come on. I know just where to go."


	3. Chapter 3

She led him to one of her favorite shops, only a few blocks away. Her face burned, but she didn't let go of his wrist, and he didn't take it back from her, until they sat on opposite sides of the table and were forced to separate.

He cleared his throat. "I thought you wanted frozen yogurt."

"Well," she said flippantly, fingers toying with the menu that she didn't need. She always got the same thing anyway. "I figured since there was no coupon and you're still paying, we should get the real stuff."

"Fair," he conceded, glancing down at his own menu. "What do you recommend?"

Karin reached over and pointed. "Well, I always get the brownie meltdown sundae, but this one is also good—"

"Can I help you?" a sugary sweet voice asked, almost obnoxiously loud. It was their waitress, tall and bubbly and batting her eyelashes.

"I think we're going to need a few minutes," Karin told her bluntly.

But the waitress paid her no mind, instead focusing all of her attention on Taicho. "I don't think I've seen you around before."

He didn't even glance her way. "I'm not really a chocolate person," he told Karin, reaching over and pointing to a different sundae. "What about—"

"That one's my favorite!" the waitress gushed, leaning forward just enough to give him a good view of her cleavage. "It's—"

His eyes met hers, then, so sharp the words died on her tongue. "We'll call you when we're ready," he said coolly.

It was almost as if the temperature in the room had dropped a few degrees, Karin noted, and the waitress seemed to notice it as well, pursing her lips and leaving them with a nod. Karin couldn't let his sudden frosty demeanor slide. "What was  _that_?"

Taicho shrugged nonchalantly. "She was being annoying."

"Well, yeah. But  _wow_." She had never seen someone shut down so quickly and thoroughly before.

He raised a brow. "I'm surprised you aren't more annoyed than me. She was trying to steal your date right from under you."

Her heart skipped a beat. "Date?"

"Well, yeah." He cleared his throat, averting his gaze back to the menu. "I got out of bed and put on pants just so I could buy you ice cream. I'd consider that a date."

"Fair enough," she replied, laughing despite herself. "If I had known you put on pants just for me, I definitely would have been more upset about our flirty waitress." He smiled slightly at that. "Her and her new tatas."

"That doesn't work on me," he sighed.

"What doesn't work on you?" Karin asked disbelievingly. "Boobs? Boobs work on everybody. Even  _I_ was looking!"

"Not me," he insisted, waving their waitress back over with a flick of a hand. She wasn't nearly as friendly as the first time she approached their table, and took their order before leaving without a word.

"Well, what  _does_  work on you?" Karin taunted, reminded of when he asked her that exact question a few days prior.

He smirked. "I like smart girls."

She scoffed. "Very funny."

"I'm serious," he protested. "I mean, obviously that was a joke, but I really do like smart girls."

"Smart how?" Karin pressed. "Book-smart? Street-smart? Smart-mouthed?"

He considered that for a second. "Doctor-smart," he answered slowly.

A thrill ran through her, but she forced herself not to show it. "Well, I'm not a doctor. But my mouth does get me into trouble every now and then, so I guess I have that going for me."

She realized too late that she had left herself wide open for some kind of innuendo-filled retort, but Taicho was ever the gentleman, merely raising an eyebrow and letting it slide.

The waitress came back with their ice cream, dropping the bowls on the table almost rudely and leaving without a second glance. Karin's was a fudgy brownie topped with vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, and tufts of whipped cream, but Taicho had chosen a few scoops of a red sorbet instead.

"Are you trying to make me look like a fatty?" Karin joked, taking a spoonful of her indulgent dessert.

The host rolled his eyes. "You're not fat."

"I am on the inside," she replied, eyeing his. "Can I taste that? You can have some of mine."

He took a spoonful of her sundae in assent, so she did the same. The watermelon on her tongue was surprisingly refreshing.

They stayed and talked about nonsensical things until long after the ice cream was gone. It wasn't until she saw him suck on her discarded maraschino cherry that she realized she might be in trouble.

~.~.~

"How was your day?" Yuzu asked, passing Karin a takeout box. She had been a really good mood since Karin had returned home, humming to herself as she took the food out of the bags and practically floating.

"Interesting," Karin replied, dipping her chopsticks into the carton of noodles and wondering just how honest she should be with her twin. She was being stupid keeping in contact with a host, ridiculous. The worst part was that she was fully aware of her stupidity—and  _still_  chose to be stupid. That was a whole other level of idiocy that smelled faintly of desperation, and Karin was kind of embarrassed, to be honest. Still, she had never lied to her twin, and wouldn't start now. "I met that host for ice cream."

Yuzu's head whipped to her. "Your host from the host club?  _You went on an ice cream date?_ "

"He paid and everything," she said nonchalantly, finding her food much more interesting than the incredulous look she was sure her sister was giving her. Unconsciously, she smiled, remembering her host had even  _put on pants_.

"I knew it!" Yuzu exclaimed, excitedly nudging Karin in the leg with her foot. "I told you he liked you!" She looked at her slyly. "You should definitely take advantage of that before he realizes you're broke."

Karin shrugged, conveniently leaving out the part where  _she_  contacted  _him_. It wasn't really important. Nope. "How was your day?" she asked instead.

The light-haired twin practically glowed, her happiness no longer able to be contained. "Jinta and I got back together!"

Karin stopped chewing, her mind slowly computing what was just said. She got back together with  _Jinta_? Asshole Jinta who had broken up with her with some bullshit excuse? Jinta, who had never treated Yuzu the way she deserved to be treated in all the years they had been dating?  _That_  Jinta?

There were a lot of things that Karin wanted to say. But when she looked at her sister, full of joy and eyes sparkling, she didn't have the heart. "That's great, Yuzu," she said instead, biting her tongue.

"Sorry we can't go see your new boyfriend anymore," Yuzu joked, digging into her own carton.

Karin snorted halfheartedly, poking at her food. Suddenly, she wasn't very hungry.

~.~.~

_Did you know that beaver teeth never stop growing?_

She grinned.  _Did YOU know that turtles can breathe through their butts?_

_What a beautiful time to be alive_

~.~.~

Karin took a swig of her beer, snorting. "You don't know what the fuck you're talking about, Aki."

Her friend Akiyama Katsuo shook his head incredulously. "I'm telling you! Thailand is going to make a comeback, and even if we make it all the way through, they're going to beat us."

"We're going to make it all the way through," she retorted. "Where is your patriotism?"

"Do you always go down with sinking ships?" Himura Ryota laughed.

Karin took another sip of her beer. "When they're wearing Japanese colors? Of course!"

After a long day of classes, her two friends were happy to join her in watching Japan and India face off in the Asian World Cup. The winner of the Cup would automatically qualify for FIFA, but Japan wasn't looking too hot. Though India normally wasn't much of a threat, the Japanese team seemed to be having an off day, letting plays that normally would be stomped out with ease breeze by them.

At this rate, Japan would be nowhere near Saudi Arabia or Iran's level, and might be thrown off for their next match against Australia. Still, Karin refused to give up on her home team, shaking her head at how quickly her friends jumped ship when things got rough. "Traitors," she accused, simultaneously wincing as India made another goal.

"I have a feeling you're going to be very disappointed tonight," Aki said sympathetically. He pushed the bowl of chips more in her direction. "Here. You need this more than I do."

"Shut up," Karin mumbled, taking a handful anyway and stuffing her mouth.

Both of the guys laughed. But then Aki frowned slightly, looking behind her. "Hey Kurosaki. Do you know that guy?"

Karin slowly chewed. "Hmm?"

"Yeah, he's been staring at you," Ryota added inclining his head in that direction and reaching for a chip himself. "You owe him money or something?"

"Excuse you," she retorted, inadvertently spraying tiny particles of potato at them. "Maybe he is just knows a pretty young thing when he sees one. Staring is the appropriate response to an ass that won't quit."

Ryota rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Whatever. Are you going to do something about it? It's weirding me out."

"Being my friend means you have to get used to my adoring fans." Nevertheless, Karin glanced over her shoulder.

And almost choked on her snack.

Taicho sat a few tables back, beer in hand, eyes firmly on the television and obviously trying not to watch her. His oversized glasses were in place, as was his green beanie, and though he merely wore a simple black t-shirt and slim-fitting jeans, Karin felt her mouth go dry.

Their eyes met, and she compulsively swallowed.

"I know him," she said faintly, turning back around and staring at the bowl of chips. Suddenly, the game seemed insignificant.

"Really?" Aki tilted his head, thinking, before waving to get Taicho's attention. "Hey!"

"What are you doing?" Karin hissed, snatching his hand down.

He frowned. "Inviting him over. He obviously wants to talk to you."

Ryota raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you don't owe him money?"

"I'm sure!" she snapped. "Now drop it, okay?"

Ryota held up his hands, placating. But Aki merely shrugged. "He's coming over here."

 _Shit_ , he was! He had grabbed his beer and was meandering over as if he was God's gift to women. Which, Karin had to admit, he probably was.

Still, when he reached their table, he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, clearing his throat. "Hi."

"Hi," she replied, distractedly turning her glass in circles. "What are you doing here?"

His lip quirked. "Watching the game, obviously."

"You like soccer?" she asked in disbelief.

"I do." He inclined his head slightly. "Haven't seen you in a while."

"Oh." It was true. Though there had been random texts in between, their ice cream date had been three weeks before. Karin shrugged nonchalantly. "My sister got back together with her boyfriend."

"I thought the breakup was bad."

"It was," Karin answered, unable to fully keep the distain from her voice. "But apparently all is forgiven."

Ryota elbowed her in the side. "Hey. Are you ever going to introduce us?"

"Oh." That was rude of her. "This is, um—"

"Hitsugaya," Taicho supplied.

Karin's eyes widened. She wondered if it was a fake name or not. "And these are my friends."

Aki gave her a funny look, but didn't say anything. "I'm Akiyama, and this is Himura."

"Nice to meet you," Taicho said politely with a slight bow.

"Do you want to join us?" Ryota offered. "We have an extra chair."

Karin's heart pounded, but when Taicho looked to her, she merely gestured to the seat next to hers.

He sat down, murmuring his thanks.

"So," Aki started, "how do you know each other?"

Once again, Karin was tongue-tied. What exactly was she supposed to say? That she enjoyed paying this nice gentleman to like her? Her friends already thought she was pretty pathetic in the love department, which was probably why they were so eager to figure out Taicho's deal. She would get them later for that. "Well…"

"We met through her sister," Taicho replied smoothly. Wow, he was good.

"Yuzu?" Ryota grinned. "Wow, Kurosaki. She's always trying to set you up."

"Don't I know it." Karin emptied her glass, irritated. "Now are we going to watch the game, or are we going to gossip like girls?"

Ryota snorted. "Somebody's touchy! It's not like Japan has any chance anyway."

Karin flicked him in the forehead. "You watch your mouth!"

"He's right," Taicho said. "They're too off their game."

She scoffed, slightly outraged. "What do you know? Nobody asked you,  _Hitsugaya_."

He smirked. "I know a lot,  _Kurosaki_."

The sound of her surname rolling off his tongue caused a thrill to run down her spine, but she didn't show it. "Yeah, okay."

"I know that Japan is going to lose this game. The defense just isn't there tonight, and that's going to mess with their heads and make them lose the next game against Qatar. Thailand might even beat us this year."

"That's what  _I_  said!" Aki pointed out smugly. "I like this guy. He's smart."

They were all probably right, but Karin was a Kurosaki, and Kurosakis were nothing but stubborn. Her pride just wouldn't let her back down. "Put your money where your mouth is," she demanded, ignoring Aki entirely. This threat was for Taicho alone. "Twenty bucks says you're wrong."

His lips reached slightly upwards, and he held out his hand for her to take. "Deal."

She took it. His skin was surprisingly cool to the touch. "Deal," she said forcefully, and shook.

Ryota grinned. "Easiest twenty you've ever made, man."

"Traitors," Karin repeated dramatically, twisting the cup in her hands. "I never truly knew any of you."

Taicho's attention flicked to the clock. Sipping the last of his beer, he stood. "I've gotta go."

"What do you mean?" Karin asked curiously. "The game isn't over yet."

"It's been over for a while," he smirked, moving expertly out of the way when Karin reached out to give him a shove. "And I have to go to work."

For a moment, she had managed to forget exactly what the snowy-haired man did for a living, but  _that_  woke her right up. "Oh."

Something flickered behind his eyes. "I'll talk to you later," he said, and it sounded like a promise. He nodded to the other guys. "It was nice meeting you both."

And then he was gone as quickly as he had appeared.

Aki gave her a sidelong look. "Cool guy."

"Yup," she responded, tone clipped. There was no fucking way she was explaining this to them.

The waitress approached their table, picking up Karin's empty cup and replacing it with a frosty one filled almost to the brim.

Karin frowned in confusion, catching the waitress before she flitted off to another table. "Excuse me. I didn't order this."

"Your friend did," the waitress replied over her shoulder. "The one who just left."

"Oh," she breathed, wrapping her hands around the glass. She could feel both Aki and Ryota staring at her slyly, but she wouldn't meet their eyes, instead drawing patterns into the glass's perspiration.

It was Ryota who spoke first. "So. Are you guys a thing or…"

Karin huffed, ignoring the warmness of her cheeks. "Mind your business and eat your damn chips."

~.~.~

To no one's surprise—not even Karin's—Japan lost the game against India. What  _was_  surprising was when, the next night, Japan lost against Qatar, just as Taicho had said they would. Karin was agitated that her team had lost against teams it usually had no problem beating, and a little down about it, if she was being honest. Still, she was a woman of her word, which is how she found herself back at Seireitei on a Wednesday night.

The plan was to find Taicho, pay him his money, and leave. She didn't really have the money to pay for his company, and it seemed a different kind of desperate for her to go to a host club in the middle of the week. Well, more desperate than going to a host club in  _general_.

This is why she didn't bother changing out of what she had worn that day—a tshirt and a pair of jeans, with a light jacket to ward off the late-night chill. She had fought with herself about whether she should even go, waiting until late to make up her mind, finally heading to the club after ten. On a fucking  _Wednesday_. Something was wrong with this, and a little voice in the back of her head kept reminding her so, but Karin placated it with the promise that she would put the money in Taicho's hot little hands and then head right back before Yuzu got home from her night class.

If she happened to put on a little mascara, it was nobody's business.

But even from the outside, Karin could tell that the club was busy, and it surprised her—she didn't realize host clubs could be busy on weekdays, when most people had prior commitments. Still, loud music and laughter spilled into the street through the closed doors, and for the millionth time that night, she questioned her decision to come at all.

But she had already gone all the way there, so she might as well finish what she started.  _It'll only be a second_ , she reasoned with herself, opening the door before she could think harder about it.

Immediately, she was accosted by a booming bassline and the sound of clinking glasses and laughing. A woman that she had never seen before met her at the door. "Welcome to Seireitei," she greeted her. "Will anyone be joining you tonight?"

"No," Karin answered awkwardly, scanning behind her in hopes of catching a glimpse of her host. "And I won't be staying. I just wanted to see Taicho for a few minutes."

The woman had a no-nonsense air about her, and after Karin said that, the vibes intensified. The woman's eyebrows furrowed, her mouth pursing. "Taicho is currently with a client," she informed her in a clipped, professional tone. "And you cannot interact with the hosts if you do not plan on paying for their time."

"I completely understand." Karin smiled, hoping that would soften the woman up. No such luck. She was the club's gatekeeper, and no crazy bitches were making their way through her. If only Karin could convince her she wasn't a crazy bitch. "Look, I've been here a few times, and Taicho is technically my host. I just need a few seconds."

The woman's eyes narrowed through her glasses. She had probably heard all of this before. "If you don't pay, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Suddenly, Matsumoto appeared in the hallway behind her, carrying an empty tray. Her eyes lit up at the sight of Karin. "You're back!" she said excitedly.

The woman blocking Karin's way looked over her shoulder, irritated. "You know this girl? She's trying to sneak in."

"Yeah, we go way back!" Matsumoto winked conspiratorially at Karin. "You need to let up, Nanao. Not everyone is a rabid fangirl."

Nanao's lips pursed again. "Scar would beg differ."

Matsumoto waved her hand dismissively. "That was  _one_  time!"

"More like  _three_."

"He'll get over it," the busty bartender scoffed, grabbing Karin by the arm. "This one's okay. She's with me!"

Karin blinked. "Actually, I can't really stay—"

"Nonsense!" Matsumoto grinned, tugging her along. "Come on, hang around for a little bit! Keep me company."

"But aren't you busy?" Karin asked, allowing herself to be lead to the room with the fully-stocked bar. A few stools were placed along the counter, so she hopped on one.

"Yeah," the bartender admitted, slipping back behind the bar and replacing a few stray bottles. "But mixing drinks all night is a boring. I'd love to have someone to talk to."

Karin eyed the hallway warily. "Who was that?"

"Nanao?" Matsumoto filled two glasses with ice and poured a clear liquid, almost to the rim. "She's the owner's girlfriend."

"Is she the club's new guard dog?"

"Sort of," she snickered, delighted. "Well, not  _new_. You've just never seen her before. Technically I was hired as the bartender, and Nanao as the hostess. On slow nights, I'm able to do both. But on busy nights like this, Nanao comes in to help."

Karin had logically known that the nights she had come in on were slow, but she hadn't realized it until witnessing the madness that was tonight. "Oh."

"She takes her job too seriously, and really needs to lighten up." Matsumoto paused in thought. "But I guess the owner is a little too relaxed sometimes. We need  _somebody_ to be on top of things. Here, the first one's on me."

Karin blinked at the drink suddenly set in front of her. "Seriously, Rangiku-san. I have class tomorrow."

The busty blonde winked. From this close, Karin could see a small tattoo of what looked like a daffodil on her chest. "It's just one drink. Besides, I've seen you knock back a lot more than that. You'll be fine."

"Are you calling me an alcoholic?" the dark-haired girl asked, amusedly picking up the glass anyway.

Matsumoto picked up her own, clinking it against Karin's. "Takes one to know one."

Karin laughed at that, taking a sip. Her eyebrows raised as quality liquor coated her tongue. "This is good."

"Of course it is," the bartender retorted, taking a few dregs of her own. "It's my favorite sake. I figured I'd treat you, considering your favorite person is currently courting another woman."

Karin snorted, not touching the implications of  _that_  statement with a twelve-foot pole. "That's his job. Isn't that the point?"

Matsumoto shrugged. "Doesn't make it any easier."

It almost sounded like the older woman was talking from experience, and for a brief second, Karin considered asking her about it. But then Matsumoto smiled, knocked back the rest of her drink, and filled another, effectively shutting down that topic. "I'm sure Taicho would rather be with  _you_ , but he's technically with a longtime client. And she's super rich, so I doubt you could compete with her for his attention. Don't take it personally; it's just how the job works. Want some more?"

Distractedly, Karin held her glass out, and the bartender topped her off.

A blond man dressed in a kimono entered the room, and judging by the empty bottles he carried, Karin deducted he was a host. Still, he exuded none of the swagger all of the previous hosts she'd met had, looking at her confusedly and stuttering out an order of beers to Matsumoto. When she saucily handed them to him, he turned red and left quickly.

She chuckled. "He's been here for two years, and he still babbles around me like a virgin. It's adorable."

"He was looking at me like I had two heads," Karin remarked. "I know I'm underdressed, but wow."

"You really have let yourself go," the blonde replied sagely.

Karin laughed, knowing that Matsumoto was only kidding. Besides, the liquor was starting to do its work, loosening her up and making everything seem funny.

The older woman polished off her second drink, clearing the bottles the host had left. "He just wasn't expecting to see you. Technically, only employees are allowed back here."

"But I'm the exception?" Karin teased, finishing her own drink.

Matsumoto's lips twitched, and she looked at Karin for so long and so fully that she started feeling slightly uncomfortable. "Yes," the blonde said softly, seemingly to herself. "I think you are."

There was hidden meaning to that, Karin was sure of it, but she let it slide, instead offering her glass for another drink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been getting a bunch of reviews saying how cute this fic is and I can't help but laugh because you have no idea what's coming NO IDEA
> 
> *cackles into the sun*


	4. Chapter 4

Technically, she didn't have any extra money to pay for these drinks—the money she had was supposed to go towards next semester's textbooks, which, due to all the science classes she had to take, were insanely expensive. Still, she reasoned with herself, she and Yuzu were slated to take a couple of the same classes. She could just borrow her twin's books; it wasn't like they really needed  _two_. It wasn't that big of a deal.

Quickly, she lost track of time, sipping on drinks with her new friend and tipsily greeting any hosts that meandered their way to the bar. The blond host was still skittish around them, but Baboon King, who she finally officially got to meet, grinned and flirted with both her and Matsumoto. He bought a round of shots, and Karin gleefully took one with them, she and the bartender both already liquored up enough to knock them back without a grimace.

It wasn't until she stood up to go to the ladies' room that she realized just how drunk she had accidentally gotten. She stumbled off the stool, having to briefly grab onto the bar for support. "Whoops," she muttered, Matsumoto cackling. Karin turned a semi-serious glare her way. "Are you going to tell me where I can piss or not?"

"Down the hall and to the right," the blonde told her, unsuccessfully stifling another laugh.

Like the faithful guard dog she was, the serious woman from before was still in the hallway. She looked at Karin suspiciously, eyes narrowing.

"Don't worry," Karin promised, hands up placatingly. She hoped she didn't look as drunk as she felt. "I'm just…just looking for the restroom."

Nanao's lips were a tight line. "To the right," she allowed with a tilt of her head.

Karin felt her hard gaze on her until she turned the corner and was out of sight. She pushed her way through the bathroom door, her lips quirked up in amusement even as she peed for what seemed like a ridiculously long time. Nothing was getting past Nanao.

Still smiling, Karin finished and washed her hands. She caught her reflection in the mirror—pinked cheeks, dazed eyes, and random smile—and started laughing. She was _definitely_  drunk off her ass. She hadn't meant for this to happen, but Matsumoto kept pouring and she just kept drinking. It was too late to care now; she might as well enjoy herself.

As she left the restroom, she could hear the bassline of a karaoke song playing, and she idly hummed along. A loud burst of laughter came from a nearby room, and, seeing Nanao was temporarily absent, Karin stuck her head through the doorway curiously.

The breath was knocked out of her when she saw the familiar shock of white hair. His back was to her, but Karin got a good look at his guest for the night, who was laughing and a little pink-faced. She was pretty, her dark hair tied into a high bun on her head, her hand resting familiarly on the host's thigh.

Her brown eyes met Karin's curiously. Like she had been stabbed with a hot poker, Karin snapped back out of sight, quickly making her way back to the bar and scooting onto her stool.

Matsumoto's smile slipped from her face at the sight of Karin's. "What?" she demanded, distractedly placing a few beer bottles on a tray and handing it to the bald host waiting for it.

The dark-haired girl wasn't sure what. All she knew was that her stomach was starting to churn, and she didn't like it. "Nothing," she replied sourly, emptying the rest of her glass. "I should really start heading back home."

The bald host left with his drinks, and Matsumoto's lips pursed, hands on her hips. "You saw them, didn't you?"

Bile burned the back of Karin's throat. "Saw who?" she said airily, standing and retrieving her jacket from the stool she had thrown it on. Fumbling in the pockets, she held out her credit card to the bartender. "Could you close out my tab?"

The blonde sighed, but took the card from her anyway. "You shouldn't let that ruin your night. I told you, it's just a part of the job."

"I know that," Karin slurred testily. She paused, slipping into her jacket, before adding belatedly, "And I don't know what you're talking about."

Matsumoto gave her a  _look_. Karin ignored it.

"Hey!"

The voice startled both of them, but it was Karin who practically jumped out of her skin, head whipping around.

Of course, it was  _him_ , standing there with a couple empty bottles of expensive champagne, face pinked with liquor. Like his fellow hosts, he was wearing a kimono, though his was as stark as his hair with an ice blue dragon embroidered throughout. Without the glasses Karin had gotten used to seeing him in, she could clearly see his bright eyes widen in surprise at the sight of her. "What are you doing here?" he asked, the corner of his lips threatening a semblance of a smile.

Karin froze, her mind blank. What  _was_  she doing here? "Uh—"

"She's keeping me company, Taicho!" Matsumoto chirped.

The host walked over to them, handing the bartender the empty bottles. He looked at Karin with interest, and she fidgeted under his stare. "Two more," he said, not taking his eyes off of her.

Karin blinked, confused, before she realized the words were directed to Matsumoto, who went right to filling his order. She cleared her throat. "I was just leaving. As soon as Rangiku finishes ringing me up." She swallowed. "Any day now, Ran."

This information seemed to perplex him. "You just got here!" he protested, a little too loudly to be declared sober.

"Two hours ago," Matsumoto snorted, and, after a hurried look at her phone, Karin was appalled to realize that it was a little after midnight.

"I really have to go," she mumbled, turning to the bartender impatiently.

"Wait," he protested, flustered. A hand clasped Karin's arm, and she swore she could feel his fingers brand her through her jacket. "It's late. I get off in an hour. Wait."

Her heart thudded in her ears. "I have class tomorrow. I would be warm and toasty in my bed by then."

He frowned. "This isn't a good area for a woman to be roaming late at night. At least let me make sure you get to the train okay."

Karin huffed, lightly shaking away his touch and crossing her arms over her chest. "Don't you have someone you're supposed to be hosting, Hitsugaya?"

He didn't react to her words, but Matsumoto did, jaw dropping before she could catch herself and clank it shut.

"I can take care of myself just fine." She tapped her nails impatiently on the bar, looking at the startled bartender pointedly. "Check please?"

"Please." He wasn't touching her anymore, but he might as well have been. She could feel him, every nerve in her body aware of his body heat, his closeness. "I know you can. But it'll give me peace of mind to know you got home safely. Just an hour. I'll even buy you a drink."

She was ready to decline, to make her way home and hope the hangover she was bound to get the next morning wasn't debilitating. But then she made the mistake of looking into his blue, blue eyes, and she sat back down on her stool. "…Fine," she relented, slipping her jacket back off. "You have one hour."

He kind of lit up at that, and Karin flushed in response. Grabbing the two champagne bottles he had asked for, he turned his attention to the blonde, inclining his head in Karin's direction. "Get her what she wants." And then, promising he'd be right back, he was gone again.

Matsumoto glanced at her, wide-eyed. "I don't think I can get you what you want," she said snidely, "but it looks like you don't need my help anyway."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Karin answered, lips quirked. She tilted her head. "That's his real name, isn't it?"

The buxom woman winked. " _I_  don't know what  _you're_  talking about."

~.~.~

She realized—belatedly, after everything looked and sounded kind of muffled around the edges—that the fruity number Matsumoto had whipped up for the both of them had been one drink too many. Karin was officially plastered; any more and she would be sure black out. Still, she had a grand ol' time giggling as Matsumoto—only slightly better off than she was—told her about some of the hijinks that went on in the club. She had so much fun that the time seemed to rush by, and after what seemed like moments, Taicho was back, a jacket pulled over his yukata, standing close enough to her that she could practically see the synapses in her body sparking violently. Blearily, she looked at her phone, and realized that he was actually ten minutes early.

"Ready?" he murmured, and suddenly her cottonmouth worsened. She needed to lie down.

"Taicho!" Matsumoto gasped delightedly. "I was just telling Red-chan about that time you guys pretended to be popstars—"

"She doesn't want to hear that, Matsumoto," he grumbled, sending a glare her way. Matsumoto grinned wider.

"Yes I do," Karin slurred, her grin mirroring the bartender's.

Taicho huffed, grabbing her jacket and holding it out for her. "Come on. Let's get you home."

Obediently, Karin teetered off her stool, slipping her arms through her jacket's sleeves as Taicho held it open for her. She saluted the blond woman smirking at them. "'Night, Ran. It's been real."

Taicho gently folded his fingers over her elbow, leading her away. Even in her drunken state, Karin was hyperaware of the arm that rested against her back.

"Come back soon~!" Matsumoto called after them, and then Taicho was leading her out of the still busy host club and out into the slightly chilly night.

They walked in silence for a while, laughter and music from other establishments spilling into the night air. His arm was still around her, fingers ghosting her arm.

"How was your date?" she stupidly asked before she could stop herself.

His foot faltered a step before continuing at its regular pace. He retrieved his arm, and Karin immediately missed his warmth. "Long," he said slowly, not meeting her eye.

She wasn't sure what he meant by that, and she was too intoxicated to decipher it. "I thought she was one of your regular customers," she prodded, wishing she could shut up. Because she didn't care. She  _didn't_.

"She is," Taicho admitted, "and she pays me well." The back of his neck was colored with something more than alcohol. "But then I saw you, and I couldn't concentrate on her anymore."

Karin bit her lip, not really sure what to say to that. She could hear her heartbeat thud in her ears, feel it pound though her veins. "Oh. Sorry."

He finally looked at her then, eyes glazed with liquor and eyebrows furrowed in consternation. But he didn't say anything, and the silence followed them all the way to the train stop.

Karin swallowed, blinking at him slowly. "Well, thanks for walking me. I'll see you around?"

He snorted then, once. "I live in the same direction, remember?"

"Oh," she replied, feeling inexplicably stupid even though he had maybe only mentioned it to her once. He followed her down the stairs, and then, after they both paid using their PASMO cards, through the turnstiles and onto the waiting train. It was mostly empty, save a few unfortunate souls coming home from work and a couple dozing businessmen that were clearly as drunk as they were.

Taicho sat down in the seat next to hers and stared dazedly out the window across from them. Karin tried not to stare at  _him_ , her hands itching to close the millimeter gap between them. She wanted to touch him, to touch his pretty hair, to circle his eyes, trace his lips, and she wasn't quite sure why, but she didn't really care either. Still, she folded her hands in her lap in an effort to keep them to herself and moved her gaze to the window as well.

Her eyes met his, and she felt like someone had slapped her when she realized that he had never been looking out the window, and had been staring at her reflection, staring at  _her_  the whole time.

As if set free from some sort of spell, her hands unclasped themselves, one of them deciding to make the journey over to him. Karin didn't look away, her hand making contact with his knee. She felt it when he stiffened, heard the sharp intake of breath when she touched him. But it only emboldened her, and her hand reached higher and higher up his leg until it was met by one of his own.

Slowly, his hand reacted, uncurling itself, turning until his palm touched her own, cool fingers slowly spreading hers apart to make room for themselves. Karin's breath hitched, eyes watching his reflection until he finally looked away.

They sat in silence the whole ride, fingers interlocked. And when it was time for Karin to get off, they did, not ceasing contact until they were in her building and in front of her front door.

Even then, they were hesitant to let go, hesitant to say goodbye.

Karin cleared her throat, swaying slightly from her body's offset equilibrium. "Well, this is me." After a moment, she realized she was staring at him, and started to turn away. But he was staring right back, so she kept right on looking. The fluorescent lighting in the hallway was making him seem to glow. Or the alcohol. Or a combination. Or maybe he was the perfect being that he claimed to be, and she was only truly seeing it now. "Thanks for walking me back."

His eyes flicked down to her lips, stayed there a few moments too long. "Of course."

Karin's pulse quickened. She swallowed. "Ask me," she commanded softly.

"Wha—"

"Ask me," she repeated, more forcefully this time. She watched him look at her lips again.

Unconsciously, a tongue darted over his own before he met her eyes again. "Can I—"

She grabbed him by the nape of the neck, angling his lips down to hers. The momentum caused him to stagger forward, forcing her backwards until her back knocked into her apartment door. Karin snorted, but they did not separate, lips moving furiously, trying to inhale each other.

She wasn't sure how long they were there, pressed against her own door, but Karin enjoyed it immensely, running her hands through his surprisingly soft hair. She hummed contentedly against his lips, biting down a little too sharply in her drunken haze, and she felt him grumble against her chest in response. His hands, previously spread on the door next to her head, snapped to her hips and pulled her flush against him, fighting to remove all space between them.

With startling clarity, Karin realized she could feel him through her clothes, could feel  _all_  of him—particularly the hot, hard part making itself known to her hipbone. She pulled back with a sharp intake of breath.  _Oh_.

"Do you want to…" she asked, slightly inclining her head towards the door.

He looked at her dazedly for a moment, face flushed, before vigorously recapturing her lips in answer. His thumbs rubbed circles into her hips.

Karin smiled against his teeth. "Then you have to be quiet," she breathed. "My sister is asleep."

His eyes, normally a cool teal, had heated unmistakably with lust into a dark green, and it sent excited shivers down her spine. She fumbled in her pockets for her keys, and then scrambled to put it into the lock before reacquainting his tongue with hers and leading him into the dark apartment by his collar.

When Taicho stubbed his toe on the corner of the couch, cursing, Karin couldn't help but laugh, her drunken giggles startling in the otherwise quiet night. He shushed her, which Karin found even  _more_  funny, snickering even as she dragged him into her room and shut the door, jackets thrown waywardly. But when he toppled them both on the bed, suddenly on top of her, her mirth died a quick death.

He wasted no time peppering her neck with open-mouthed kisses, and she responded with a testing roll of her hips. He groaned, so softly that she might not have heard him if her earlobe wasn't between his teeth. Wanting more of a reaction, she hiked a leg more securely over his hip and did it again, hissing at the sweet friction. Taicho responded in kind, and soon they had a slow grind, a rhythmic meeting of pelvises that left them both panting into each other's mouths.

Bold, Karin pushed eager fingers into the folds of his yukata, roaming his solid chest and scraping with light fingernails. His breath hitched, so she scratched him again, circling a hardened nipple. He breathed harshly into her neck, and then suddenly his hand was under  _her_  shirt, leaving goosebumps in its wake. Fingers teased the underwire of her bra for only a second before the undergarment was forced up and her breasts were released.

She sighed, nipples turning to pebbles as he lifted her tshirt and exposed them to the night air. When he dipped his head, an adventurous tongue flicking over a firm nub, Karin's hips bucked almost violently. Suddenly, none of it was enough, and she tugged him up by his hair, forcing him to meet her eye. There were far too many clothes between them.

"Stop teasing me," she demanded, tugging impatiently on his obi. She could see him grinning in the dark, and scowled when he pulled away from her. "What are you do—"

He slipped a finger over her lips to silence her, and she defiantly sucked it into her mouth, teeth tugging at the skin. For a few seconds, he watched her lap him with an almost uncomfortable intensity, even pushing the finger further in. But then he exhaled loudly though his nose and retreated from her again, his finger leaving her eager mouth with a distinct  _pop_.

Taicho crouched on the floor, impatiently ruffling though their hastily removed jackets until he procured a small foil square from his pocket, holding it up in explanation.

Karin was impressed that he had been the first to bring it up, and felt herself getting more turned on. Still, she scoffed. "What?" she jested, perking up when she heard him rip the packet open. "You just  _assumed_  you were going to get some?"

"Of course not," he murmured, turning away to adjust himself through his parted yukata. It was too dark for Karin to see him put the condom on, but then he was back and unbuttoning her jeans much too slowly for her tastes. "But you should always be prepared."

She didn't say anything, eyes flickering to her nightstand, where a rarely-used box sat in the top drawer for an occasion just like this. Instead, she lifted her hips, aiding him in guiding her jeans down her legs. And then, with a hook of a cool finger, her underwear.

Restless, she pulled him down until he was once again settled between her thighs, hooking her legs around his slim hips and almost keening at the feel of him slipping along her core with no annoying clothing in the way. He froze, closing his eyes and gritting his teeth. But Karin was having none of it. With a sure hand, she angled him at her entrance and bore down.

The result was instantaneous. Taicho choked, hands twisting in the sheets by her head. Karin grunted uncomfortably as he stretched her wide, not as ready as she thought she was. Still, when he paused to look down at her in concern, she merely grabbed him by his ass and pulled until he was all the way in.

He groaned, slowly pulling out to the tip before delving back into her heat and capturing her lips with his.

It had been a hot minute since Karin had had sex, but it like riding a bike—her body never forgot how, she just needed a little warmup. Still, she was too busy enjoying the musky smell of him, the feel of his tongue, to mind too much. She could taste his intoxication, the expensive champagne that still lingered, and it only made her return his leisurely thrusts with increasing fervor, forcing him to match her pace. He grabbed her by the thighs and shifted her a bit, snapping his hips at a slightly different angle.

It made all the difference. She yelped involuntarily, warm pleasure slowly coiling low in her belly. Wetness crept between her legs. "Yes," she whispered into the shell of his ear, urging him on. "Right there.  _Right_ —"

But it was too late. Taicho panted, his thrusts becoming deep and fast, but arrhythmic. A minute later, with a muffled grunt, he collapsed on her, hot breath fanning on her chest.

She drew idle shapes on his damp skin while he recovered, slightly disappointed it was all over so quickly, but also pretty fucking exhausted. In fact, she was just starting to drift off when Taicho gained the strength to slide out of her, startling her awake. Sleepily, he placed a chaste kiss on her jaw before rolling off her and almost immediately snoring.

~.~.~

Her alarm was going off, and she felt like she was going to die.

It was way too early, and she was way too hungover, and  _way_  too warm and comfortable to leave her bed. But her alarm was going off like a jackhammer to her skull, and it was all she could do to keep the nausea at bay.

Wincing, Karin attempted to turn the alarm off without fully opening her eyes, inwardly debating the merits of simply throwing her phone at the wall and being done with it. It wasn't until she tried to move—and was hindered by the weight of an arm slung across her—that she realized someone else was in the bed with her.

Momentarily befuddled, she turned in her companion's embrace, eyes immediately connecting with a bleary, blue pair.

For a minute they just stared at each other, bodies millimeters apart, almost nose to nose. Then, he closed his eyes. "Aren't you going to turn that off?"

Oh. The alarm. She had forgotten about that.

Turning to the other side again, she reached for her phone, sitting innocently on her nightstand, and stopped its incessant wailing. Her blanket fell slightly from her body, and she realized that she was naked, save for the tshirt she wore. She swallowed, looked over her shoulder at him. "Hey."

His arm was still around her middle, seemingly comfortable there. "Hey."

She wondered if this was some elaborate dream. His snowy hair was adorably mussed, eyes still clouded with sleep. Almost hilariously, he still wore his yukata, though it was so wide open, she could see his well-muscled chest, as well as the light trail of hair that started at his belly button and disappeared below her blankets.  _Damn_. "You know, I didn't plan on… _this_  happening." She bit her lip. "But I'm not exactly sorry it happened, either."

"Me neither." He did his maybe-smile, and Karin felt her heart flutter. Then he grimaced. "Though I wish I was less drunk."

She grunted in agreement, plopping back down to her pillow. This was kind of nice, she realized. She had imagined one night stands to be awkward in the morning, but she was enjoying the warmth of his body next to hers, found his gravely voice soothing.

"Was it…was it any good?" Taicho's face was a light pink, and Karin couldn't help but grin.

"What, were you that drunk?" she teased. "You don't remember?"

He rolled his eyes. "I know it was good for  _me_ , but that wasn't what I was asking."

She shifted at the question. "I had a great time."

"But did you…?"

She was startled by the intensity of his stare, realizing all at once just what he was asking her. "No," she answered, not even considering lying. "But that's okay. I had fun."

"I'm sorry." He sighed heavily, and Karin was surprised to realize his breath still smelled more like liquor than morning breath. "I would fix that right now if I wasn't so hungover."

This wasn't how she imagined a one night stand to be like at  _all_. Why was he apologizing? "Don't worry about it. I'm probably more hungover than you."

"Raincheck then," he murmured, fingers lazily tracing patterns on her spine. Her nipples hardened, very visible beneath the thin fabric of her shirt.

Maybe the reason this didn't feel like a one night stand is because it wasn't one.

She swallowed, tapping a finger against the daffodil on his chest and delighting in the goosebumps that rose there. "You know, Rangiku-san has this same exact tattoo. Should I be worried?"

Taicho was visually appalled at the question, and Karin couldn't help but laugh. "We're just friends!" His face softened. "But she helped me out of a tough situation. We got these together."

"That's nice," Karin answered, and she meant it. She had only been teasing; it was obvious that there was nothing romantic between the host and the bartender.

"So." He cleared his throat. "Why  _were_  you in the club last night?"

"I was trying to give you the money I owe you! But then Rangiku-san asked me to have a drink with her, and one drink became ten." She grinned. "I'd give it to you now, but to be honest, I feel kind of weird about it."

"Why?"

"We just did the do, and you want me to give you money?"

He sputtered and she laughed again, spontaneously brushing his lips with hers. He responded by tightening his arm around her, closing the distance between their bodies.

A loud knock on the door startled them both.

"Karin!" Yuzu's voice called. "Karin, you're going to be late!"

Karin bolted upright, glancing at the glowing numbers on her phone.  _Shit._ "Coming, Yuzu!" she yelled, scrambling out of bed for her discarded underwear. After sliding them on, as well as her jeans, she ripped her shirt off and rifled through a pile on her floor for a relatively clean one.

When the hairs on the back of her neck rose, she turned her head, only to find Taicho still in bed, staring at her, eyes lingering on her naked back. "What?" she demanded, sliding a sports bra over her head. She felt gross, and really wanted to shower—or, better yet, slip back under the sheets with him—but she no longer had time for either of those things. She had a class to go to, and attendance counted a decent amount of her final grade.

"Nothing," he murmured, getting out of bed and retying his obi. "Nothing at all, Karin."

The sound of her name on his lips almost made her trip out of the sneakers she was attempting to put on. Her head whipped in his direction.

He smirked. "It's a pretty name."

"Thank you," she huffed.

"Did you want to get some breakfast, Karin?"

Again.  _For fuck's sake._ "I can't right now." Though a greasy breakfast sounded amazing to her weak stomach. "Maybe some other time."

The door creaked open, and both of them froze. Yuzu's head poked in. "Are you okay—"

And then she saw that her sister was not alone. When Yuzu's eyes landed on Taicho, they grew as big as saucers, jaw dropping. She glanced at Karin, who was trying to tame her hair, and then settled back on the host.

Taicho shifted uncomfortably. "Good morning."

"Good morning," Yuzu replied dazedly.

"I was just leaving," he informed her, scribbling on the corner of one of the papers scattered on Karin's desk. He turned to the dark-haired twin. "That's my personal cell number. You can…call me if you want."

"Okay," Karin answered breathlessly.

He stood there for a few awkward seconds, then cleared his throat. "Well, I'm just going to head out."

"Okay."

He nodded at her, then scuttled past Yuzu in the doorway.

Yuzu waited until she heard the front door shut before she rounded on her sister. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish, as if she couldn't decide what to ask first. "Wha…"

Karin shrugged, uncharacteristically shy.  _Hitsugaya Toshiro_ , the paper on her desk said with a number underneath, and she couldn't fight the tugging of her lips.

"Why was he wearing a kimono?"

~.~.~

_Sitting in class dying. I wish we had gone to breakfast._

_I'm eating a gigantic plate of french fries right now._

_Why must you hurt me, Toshiro_

 


	5. Chapter 5

"What's your favorite color?"

"Green. Which of these molecules or ions is electrophilic?"

"Where's somewhere you'd like to visit before you die?"

"America. Stop asking me questions. I'm supposed to be asking  _you_  questions."

Karin pouted, taking a sip of her latte. "Is it such a crime to try to get to know you better?"

He fixed her with an even stare. "When you're supposed to be studying, yes."

They were sitting at Karin's favorite café, in her favorite booth, study materials scattered across the table. Toshiro had offered to help her study for her upcoming organic chemistry exam, but now, seeing him sitting across from her—and unable to forget how he looked laying next to her, sun-specked, hair mussed—she was finding it hard to concentrate. This was probably a bad idea.

"Come on." He pushed the list toward her. "Which is electrophilic?"

"D," she answered, barely looking at it.

He stared at her through his glasses. "Are you not paying attention, or do you not know what electrophilic means?"

She grinned shamelessly. "Not paying attention. If you could pick another profession, what would it be?"

He looked away, vaguely uncomfortable. "Positively-charged bromine ions are electrophilic, not negatively-charged ones. So A is correct, not D."

Karin's mouth gaped a little. "How the fuck did you know that?"

He shifted in his seat, still not looking at her. "Geneticist."

"What?"

"I would be a geneticist." He shuffled through her notes. "I was studying for it. Was awarded a fellowship at a top university."

"Wow." She was thoroughly impressed, and wanted to press him further, wanted to know why he was sitting there with her instead of out saving the world, but from the tension in his jaw, could tell it was a touchy subject. Instead, she ran a saucy foot up his leg until his eyes shot to hers. "You  _are_  pretty smart. I like smart guys."

He cleared his throat. "Trying to distract me isn't going to work," he retorted, his tight voice belying him. "You still have to study."

Karin burst out laughing, and Hitsugaya's lips quirked in return. As if it was perfectly normal, he reached across the table for her hand, intertwining their fingers.

"Let's move on to alkyne reactions."

Happiness filled her body with warmth, and she couldn't stop smiling. "Yes sir."

~.~.~

"So you just  _happened_  to be in the neighborhood." Karin smirked, grabbing a cold water bottle from the fridge. She had been at the end of her usual run, hair in disarray and sweating more than a hooker in church, when Hitsugaya caught up to her, wrapping an arm around her waist like it was a normal occurrence.

"I keep telling you that I live around here," he responded, waving away her wordless water bottle offer and making himself at home on her couch. Karin could see the amused look in his eyes behind his glasses. "Why don't you believe me?"

She took a gulp of water, then placed the cool bottle on her neck, secretly pleased when his eyes rested there. "I find it more likely that you're stalking me."

He snorted. "That's a fair assumption."

"Not that I blame you. I'd stalk me too." She grinned. "But just so you know, there's no need for that anymore. Just shoot me a text or something. We'll work it out."

A snowy eyebrow raised, a smile dancing on the edge of his lips. "Really."

"Yes." She was tempted to join him on that couch, to melt into his skin and breathe him in. But she desperately needed a shower, and had a class to get to. If she sat down now, she knew the will to get up would escape her completely. "In fact, if you had texted me earlier, I would have been able to tell you that I have class in an hour and that maybe I could see you after."

"But it's just the dumb pass-fail one, right?" he asked, startling her. "The one you only took to fulfill a humanities requirement?"

She wondered when it had gotten to this, to the point that he was now memorizing her class schedule. It might have weirded her out, if she wasn't starting to become familiar with his work schedule. When exactly had their relationship crossed that line?

"Yes," she answered, mentally shaking herself off. "But that doesn't mean that I shouldn't go."

"You're absolutely right," he responded so seriously that she almost rolled her eyes.

"Well I've got to shower." As if proving her point, she slipped her damp tshirt over her head. "You're welcome to stay. Or not. It's your choice."

She felt his stare burning into her back, but she didn't turn around as she walked into the bathroom. After a moment's hesitation, she left the door wide open, heart thrumming in her ears as she peeled off the rest of her clothes and stepped into the tub.

This was insane, and she didn't know why she was doing it. Well, obviously she knew  _why_ —he was fucking hot, that's why—but this was pretty bold, especially for her. She didn't normally sleep with men she wasn't in a relationship with, especially not sober. She certainly didn't proposition men she wasn't in a relationship with.  _Especially_   _not sober_. So what the hell was wrong with her?

Toshiro was different, she was finding. She wasn't exactly sure why, but he was, and he was making her do things she didn't normally do. Like subtly hinting at sex.

Anxiously, she pulled up the latch for the shower, and when warm water streamed out of the showerhead, she stuck her head under it. What if she was  _too_  subtle? What if he got her hint, and just decided to leave anyway? Her stomach clenched at the thought.

What if he  _did_  decide to join her, and it was weird without alcohol-tinted glasses, and then their whole relationship, whatever it was, just became  _weird_?

A sudden rustle outside the shower curtain made her thoughts come to a screeching halt. A quick glance through the curtain revealed a definite shadow, contorting in ways that mimicked undressing.

Swallowing thickly, Karin grabbed the bar of soap and distractedly began lathering herself. It was too late. She had put it out there, and he had accepted, and whatever was going to happen was going to happen, and it was going to change her, change  _them_  for better or worse.

The sudden cool whisper of air on her backside made her flinch, but she continued lathering up, clearing her throat. "What took you so long?"

The shower curtain closed. "I wasn't sure if this was what you wanted."

"Of course it is," she replied with a scoff, willing her false bravado to calm the butterflies in her stomach. She turned her head slightly, and swallowed at the sight of him. He was lithe, but filled with lean muscle that she wanted to run her hands over. "Sorry, I'm usually a little more clear."

His lips quirked. "More clear?" She could see the slight apprehension in his eyes, and that made her feel a bit better. He was as nervous as she was.

She set the soap back on its rack, turning to face him fully. "Well, normally I'd just ask if you wanted to fuck."

His cock, which she had been purposely ignoring up to that point, twitched rather suddenly, sending a jolt of electricity straight to her own loins. Karin tried to meet his eyes—dark green and hazy—but they were otherwise occupied watching suds journey between her breasts, dip into the valley of her navel, and wind their way through her pubic hair, creeping down her legs. "Really."

Water plastered her hair to her shoulders, her neck, her back. She hardly noticed. "But I wasn't completely positive we were on the same page. So."

He reached for her in answer, hands lightly resting on her hips as fingers massaged the skin there. "I think we are."

And then there wasn't any space between their bodies, and he was stirring on her thigh, lips scant inches away. She grinned, looping her arms around his neck and pulling him down to close the gap.

It was a strange sensation, being in the shower with another person. She had never done so before, not even with her few ex-boyfriends, had never even thought about it. But the small space forced a pleasant intimacy, the steam stoking the fire between them and the warm water trailing satisfyingly down her backside.

It all seemed to make his tongue taste sweeter.

She smiled against his lips when he gave her rear a firm squeeze, and moved her attention to his pale, slim neck, dragging her tongue before leaving slow open-mouthed kisses on the already damp skin. Hitsugaya grunted, reflexively pulling her forward her by her ass, attempting to remove the nonexistent space between them. Karin let out an involuntary gasp as her clit ground against his hipbone.

He paused at the sound, for a few moments only inhaling though his nose. Then, carefully, he retrieved his hands and took a step back.

"What?" Karin demanded, baffled. Her body immediately protested the absence of his, nipples puckering a little in the slightly cooler atmosphere. "What's the matter?"

He was still looking at her like he wanted to devour her, and his manhood was looking at her too, jutting at attention in a way that simply couldn't be ignored, the head already weeping. What could possibly be wrong?

He tilted his head slightly, the tip of his tongue making a quick swipe across his upper lip. "I want to try something."

"Sure," she consented, a little too quickly for her tastes. But she was officially turned on, and it just wasn't right for him to leave her like that.

A soft smile appeared on his lips, and then his hands were on her hips again, gently turning her around to face the waterspout.

Karin's heart thundered in her veins, slightly nervous about what she had just assented to. But mostly, she couldn't tramp down the thrill of the unknown, of being spontaneous, of being spontaneous with  _him_.

He was there again, his front flush against her back, a hand moving inward to toy with the dark curls at the apex of her thighs. A foot slipped between hers and tapped them apart, wordlessly asking her to widen her stance.

She did, her feet touching the sides of the tub, parting her thighs just enough for him to fit between them. She hissed at the feel of him, hard and hot as a testing rock of his hips slid his length across her slit. Eager, she thrust backwards, hoping to speed up the pace, but he chuckled, continuing to slowly slip himself over her, the head of him brushing over her clit every time his pelvis met her ass.

The water was still showering them, but even so Karin could feel her wetness coating him, slickening their grind. It was getting to be too much, and not enough. She wanted him inside her. "Stop teasing me," she demanded, squeaking when a sudden, hard press on her clit by a thumb sent pleasure snaking down her legs. Indignant, she looked over her shoulder at him, only to see him smiling crookedly at her.

The bastard was getting off on riling her up!

At her glare, he laughed, catching her ear with his teeth. "Okay." His breath was hot against her skin, and he reached up, redirecting the showerhead's flow to the side wall. "Bend over."

For a moment, she thought about regaining control, just turning around and having her way with him. But if she was being honest, she kind of liked the game he was playing. She was usually dominant in sex—her personality naturally made it so—but she was finding his quiet commands, the gentle way he took ownership of her body, so, so,  _so_  fucking sexy.

She bent over, only making it about forty-five degrees before her sensitive breasts slid across the cool tiled wall. Still, it did the trick. Her private parts were spread, her hips angled invitingly. She would have been a little embarrassed if she didn't want his cock in her so badly.

But that still didn't come. Hitsugaya nibbled a little longer on her earlobe before moving his attention to her neck—so much attention, in fact, that she was sure to have a mark there. He unstuck her damp hair from her back, trailing hot, open-mouthed kisses down her spine.

Karin squirmed, unable to stay still once she realized just what was happening. He chuckled against her skin, and then sharp bite to one of her ass cheeks startled a gasp from between her lips.

"Is that okay?" he murmured, tongue already soothing the offended area. "Do you like that?"

"Yes," she replied, just as quietly. Surprising herself with her answer.

And then his tongue was dipping over her asshole, lightly teasing the entrance and making her shudder and almost choke. For a moment, heart pounding, she wondered if this was something else he would ask permission for, and whether she would give it. But just as quickly, it was gone, and he seemed to find his true target, nose nuzzling her damp curls and breath feverish against her netherlips.

Karin swallowed, wondering if her breathing was as loud to his ears as it was to hers. But then he slipped a careful finger into her and she couldn't help the audible  _whoosh_ of air that escaped her lungs, couldn't help the groan when he ran the flat of his tongue along her clit. When he added a second finger and increased his pace, she couldn't help but squirm.

By the time he was really fucking her, fingers fast and curling and hitting  _something_ , teeth lightly nibbling on her labia, tongue slick and hot—by that time she was panting, her breath visibly misting the tiles. She was grinding on his face like a harlot and making a ridiculous keening noise, but she just couldn't make herself stop, just couldn't feel embarrassed about it, because it was all  _so fucking good_.

When she looked down, she could see him, sucking on her like a leech, one hand fucking her and the other working himself, pumping leisurely. Then his eyes caught hers, and he hummed contentedly against her, making her cry out, momentarily cross-eyed.

His fingers exited her with a wet sound. She was immediately indignant, ready to give him a piece of her mind—because she was  _so close_  and how  _dare_  he—but then his fingers were replaced with his tongue, and he fucked her zealously with that instead, nails digging into her thighs in an attempt to keep her relatively still.

When she finally came, it was hard. She clawed at the tiles, hands desperately searching for something,  _anything_  to hold onto as she was slammed off the metaphorical cliff. She was gasping, but made no other sounds, the orgasm rendering her momentarily mute.

Hitsugaya watched her intently, letting her ride it out and milking every drop. And when she finally came down, her body relaxing, he moved over to her clit and sucked. _Hard_.

Karin yelped, too sensitive, and tried to push him away. "Toshiro—" But she was cut off by her own scream as she was thrown into another bout of bliss, more intense than the first, and she had to bite down on her lip to muffle it.

When her legs finally stopped shaking and her breathing leveled, she straightened, looking over her shoulder at him. Hitsugaya was still kneeling, white hair waterlogged and a smug look on his face. Normally, she would do or say something to knock him down a peg, but after that performance, he truly deserved to gloat. " _Shit_ ," she complimented, pushing hair off of her neck.

He stood. "That good, huh?"

She had tried it once before with an ex, but it had been mediocre at best.  _That_ …her legs still felt like jelly. "Well, yeah."

"Good," he replied, grinning.

There was a little wetness around his mouth, and it reawakened something in her to realize it was from her. Still coming down from her dopamine high, she wrapped a hand around his shaft, so erect that it had to be painful for him. "Your turn," she singsonged, making her way up the velvety flesh with a firm pump.

He groaned, hips involuntarily snapping forward before he audibly exhaled through his nose. "You don't have to do that," he said, his voice strained, carefully removing her hand from his body.

Karin frowned. "What are you talking about?"

He cleared his throat, somewhat embarrassed. "I did that for you. To make up for last time. To make  _you_  feel good."

Well, if she wasn't back in the mood before, she certainly was now. "So you don't want to have sex with me."

He looked appalled. "I didn't say that at  _all_. I'm saying that I didn't step into this shower with that intention. I just wanted you to have a good time."

"Really." She grinned mischievously, turning back around and slowly, tantalizingly, bending back over. "So you're saying that you wouldn't turn this down."

He didn't answer, eyes fastidiously roving what she was revealing. His Adam's apple bobbed.

"Well okay then." She grinned to herself, swaying her hips saucily. "If you really want me to have a good time, then I suggest you hop on."

He snorted at her ridiculousness, but then he closed the distance and they were right where they had started, skin to skin, her back to his front. He wrapped his arms around her, breath hot on her neck. "I wasn't planning on this," he told her quietly. "I didn't bring a—"

"Don't worry about it," she replied, turning her head to look him in the eye. She thought of the pack of pills she had started taking a few weeks ago. "I took care of it."

That seemed to be all the encouragement he needed. Toshiro leaned forward, capturing her mouth with his. A shiver ran through her when she realized she could taste herself on him, and she pushed backwards, grinding slowly on his length.

He moaned into her mouth, fingers quickly darting to her thighs and gripping so tightly in an attempt to halt her movements, Karin thought she might have marks. But then he was lining himself up with her and pushing himself inside so abruptly that she choked.

"Someone's worked up," she teased breathlessly, turning her head to catch his eye. "A little rough, are we?"

He swore, running a hand through his hair and causing it to stand up at adorably awkward angles. "Sorry." He looked at her guiltily. "Did that hurt?"

She shook her head, experimentally rolling her hips in a way that had both of them holding their breaths. "Just surprised me. But…maybe I like it rough."

He was silent for a beat, merely looking at her. Trying to read her. Then, he smirked. "Be serious."

"I  _am_ being serious!" she retorted.

"So what you're saying is…" He gave a slow pump, causing her skin to ripple with pleasure. He pulled back until only the tip of him was still inside her. "You don't like  _this_."

She scowled. He was teasing her again, and she didn't appreciate his timing. "I didn't say that. But right now I want—"

The sudden snap of his hips knocked the breath right out of her. She shrieked, the sound reverberating off the tiles.

" _That_ ," he finished lowly in her ear, pulling almost all the way out and slamming into her again. Making her teeth clack together. "Right?"

She could only moan in answer, raising her hips to meet his and matching his pace. "My…my hair," she gasped, a pleading lilt to her tone.

"What?" he whispered hotly, the onslaught of his hips refusing to slow.

Her eyes squeezed shut, barely able to stutter, " _Pull_ ," before groaning, deep in her chest.

Needing no further instruction, he fisted a handful, wrapping the long strands around his hand and  _pulled_ , firmly and sharply. Karin made a guttural noise, her head snapping back far enough to see the fierce storm in his eyes as he continued to relentlessly plow into her, his balls making a distinct slapping noise as they slammed repeatedly into her ass.

After a few moments, he pulled harder, wordlessly asking her to stand more upright, so she did, moaning lowly as he put a foot on the tub's ledge to better accommodate the new position.

One hand stayed on her hip, for leverage, while the other roughly detangled itself from her tresses and lavished her breasts with attention, caressing the skin and squeezing her nipples until they pebbled. He dipped his head, sucking on the thundering pulse in her neck. And when she turned to meet him, he sucked on her tongue too.

It all felt so good that soon she was starting to feel that familiar heat pool low in her belly, the pinpricks of pleasure running up and down her legs. And apparently so was he, because then his strokes were becoming erratic, and he was mumbling into her shoulder, breath labored. "I…I think…"

"Come on," she urged, reaching behind her and cupping his scrotum. Massaging it until he was choking into her hair. " _Come on_."

His hand slipped to the apex of her thighs, vigorously circling the bundle of nerves there, and she inhaled sharply through her teeth, chanting nonsense and  _begging_ him not to stop. She ground back into him, their paces no longer in sync, but it didn't matter because the friction was just too delicious, and everything was just too slick, and too hot, and her vision was starting to blur around the edges—

She came before he did, less intensely than before, but more drawn out, making her breath hitch in her throat. She clamped down on him, her body trying to coax him to follow her, and after a few moments he did, spasming, swearing under his breath, warmth shooting into her.

At the end, they were both spent, his body covering hers as he pressed her into the tiled wall, resting, trying to catch their breaths. When Toshiro finally seemed to gather his wits, he kissed her shoulder and pushed off of her, leaving her strangely cold.

Karin straightened and faced him, smiling. Acutely aware of the sticky wetness running down her legs. "Well, now I truly need a shower." She turned her attention to the showerhead, which was still spraying water away from them. "You're lucky our landlord pays the water bill."

He rolled his eyes.

"You're still killing Mother Earth, though."

"Would you have preferred I drowned?" he asked incredulously.

She grinned, much too large to be good news. "Ah, I see. You'd rather drown in the pussy. Good choice."

He scoffed, cheeks pinking. "Do you have to be so crude?"

" _Crude_?" Her grin grew wider. "You're licking assholes without giving a girl fair warning, but  _I'm_  the crude one?"

Oh, he was  _definitely_  blushing now. He looked away, intently studying the smiling strawberries on her shower curtain. Was he  _pouting_?

Laughing, Karin reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck, placing a chaste kiss on his lips. "I'm just messing with you," she murmured, smiling genuinely when his gaze met hers. "I had a really good time."

"So did I." He kissed her, a little less innocently than she had him, and then broke away. "But don't you have a class to get to?"

She snorted. "There is no way in  _hell_  I'm going to that class now. I think I'm just going to watch the game. You're welcome to stay, if you'd like."

"And watch Japan get slaughtered again?" He smirked. "I might have to think about that one."

"Watch it," she warned, her lips quirking against her will. Damn it. "Or I'll drown you for real. And my lady parts won't be involved this time."

~.~.~

And that's how Yuzu found them an hour later—sitting on the couch, sipping on beers. Karin, in sweatpants and an old tshirt, hair wrapped in a towel, feet resting in Hitsugaya's lap and swearing at the television. Hitsugaya, hair still slightly damp, wearing his glasses but not his hat, making snide remarks about the game to annoy Karin further.

At the sound of the front door closing, Karin glanced over. "Oh, hey Yu."

"Hello," Toshiro greeted politely.

"Hi," she responded automatically, the strangest look on her face. She took off her jacket. "Don't you have class today, Karin-chan?"

Karin shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm playing hooky. Are you okay?"

"What do you mean?"

Karin frowned. "You're looking at me funny. Are you sick? Is there something on my face?"

"Oh no," the light-haired twin replied, waving her hand frantically in dissent. "I was just surprised that we have a guest. Will you be staying for dinner, Hitsugaya-kun? It should be ready in an hour."

He seemed surprised to have been addressed by his actual name. Like Karin wouldn't have told her own twin. "Thank you, but I have to work soon. I'll just pick something up on the way."

"Sorry to hear that. Maybe next time." She smiled, but Karin could tell that it didn't reach her eyes. "Well, you two have fun."

Karin frowned as she left the room to start dinner. But sudden cheering brought her attention back to the TV. She would talk to Yuzu later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, oops. I hope y'all didn't think that last chapter was the only smut. ;DDDD
> 
> Secondly, this is a work of fiction. Do not do as the characters do. Vagina then butt, everybody. Don't do it the other way around, cause that's just asking for trouble. lol Also, I feel like I shouldn't have to say this but I will anyway: unprotected sex with strangers is a no-no.
> 
> #KinkyKarin2015 Join the movement


	6. Chapter 6

"This is going to be terrible," Karin said under her breath.

Yuzu tried to hold in a smile. "It won't be that bad, Karin-chan."

"Yes it will," their brother Ichigo piped up from his chair across from them. He crossed his arms in front of his chest. "It most definitely will."

"Hey now." Their father, fully clad in a frilly apron and oven mitts, pouted at them. "Who do you think cooked for you before Yuzu could?"

"Mom," Ichigo retorted. "Obviously."

Tears welled up in Kurosaki Isshin's eyes, and he threw himself at the ever-present poster of his late wife. "Masaki, why must our children hurt me so?"

Yuzu was the only one who attempted to comfort him, patting him on the back and apologizing. Karin and Ichigo rolled their eyes at each other.

It was the first time in a long time that the Kurosaki family was able to get together for dinner. Though their interactions sometimes conveyed otherwise, they were all actually very close, and always made sure to set aside time to spend together. And this reunion was rather overdue; though Yuzu had been back more frequently to visit her boyfriend, Karin hadn't been back to Karakura in a few months. It had been a while since she had seen her neurotic father, and even perpetually grumpy Ichigo, who was busy with a PhD program hours away from Tokyo. She missed her family, no matter how ridiculous it was at times.

"I still don't understand why we didn't just ask Yuzu to cook," her brother muttered, running a hand through his spiky orange hair.

"Because!" Isshin boomed from across the room, tears miraculously disappearing. He had always had the hearing of a hawk. "Your sister needs to relax sometimes too! She doesn't need to always cook."

"Then what about takeout?" Karin chimed in, though she was just kidding. Like she assumed Ichigo was. Isshin was actually a decent cook, but sometimes it was fun to rile their father up. She would never admit it, but she missed Isshin's dramatic antics, and nothing made her feel more at home than to see him overreact to every little thing. It reminded her of her childhood.

"No," he said grandly. "I have a spectacular dinner prepared."

Yuzu sniffed the air delicately. Something was clearly starting to burn. "Daddy, maybe you should check on your spectacular dinner."

Isshin's eyes widened, and he rushed towards the kitchen. "I was just headed that way, Yuzu-chan," they heard him call from the hall. "I'll be right back!"

Ichigo rolled his eyes again. Karin snorted, leaning almost conspiratorially across the table. "So, how's life been, Ichi-nii?"

He frowned distractedly. "Busy. I'm pretty sure my thesis is slowly killing me."

"Well, you're the one who decided you wanted to be an English professor."

"Don't remind me," he sighed. "How are you two?"

"Good," Yuzu answered.

" _Great_ ," Karin said at the same time.

Her siblings turned their eyes to her. Yuzu's eyebrows furrowed, and Ichigo's frown deepened. "Why great?" he asked slowly. Suspiciously.

Karin thought of blue eyes and gentle hands and bit the inside of her cheek. "No reason, wow."

"Are you seeing somebody or something?"

She fidgeted under her siblings' stares, but couldn't stop the small smile that crept onto her lips. "…Maybe. I'm not sure yet." She met Yuzu's gaze, surprised to find her twin frowning as well. She sent her a questioning look.

"What does  _that_  mean?" Ichigo demanded.

"It means don't worry about it." She smiled evasively, standing. "I have to pee. Why don't you stop wasting your big brother worry on me and start grilling Yuzu on asshole Jinta?"

Ichigo glowered. But he took the bait, turning his concerned amber eyes in Yuzu's direction. "What about Jinta?"

Karin took her time in the bathroom, giving herself a little extra time to think. It was too early to put a label on the thing she and Toshiro had, and the  _thing_  wasn't clear-cut. They had slept together twice, so they could have been fuck buddies. But there was the fact that he liked to touch her familiarly in public—loved to thread their fingers together, or wrap an arm around her waist, or place a chaste kiss on her lips. And  _she_  liked it too. Which definitely overstepped the bounds of fuck buddies.

Not to mention how much she just enjoyed his company. When he took time out of his day to buy her ice cream or watch soccer with her or help her study, not because she necessarily asked him to but because he  _wanted_  to—

That sounded like a  _relationship._

…Were they in a relationship?

She imagined bringing him home to meet everyone. Her dad would love him immediately, she knew. Ichigo would be a tougher nut to crack, but he and Hitsugaya had enough similarities that Karin knew he'd come around easily enough. Yuzu—

Karin frowned. Yuzu had been acting strangely. In the beginning, she had seemed thrilled that Karin had found someone. But ever since she caught Hitsugaya in their apartment a few days ago—no, probably a little longer. Probably since she barged into Karin's room and found them both in various stages of undress—she had been strangely distant. All fake smiles when Toshiro was mentioned, and furrowed brows when she thought Karin wasn't looking. Karin had been meaning to ask her what that was all about, but it was the beginning of exam season, and both of them had been busy for the past few days. Still, she was sure Yuzu would come around. Karin was truly _happy_ , and it had been a long time since she had been so.

Humming to herself, she exited the bathroom, making her way back to the dining room.

And noticed the change in atmosphere immediately.

Yuzu blinked at her, eyes large and watery. Ichigo's face was a deep red. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" he hissed at her.

She took a step back at these new developments. "Sitting down," she snipped, reaching for her chair. Not liking his tone. "What's bitten you in the ass?"

Ichigo's teeth ground together. "A host?" he asked slowly. "Really?"

Karin froze. Then, hand gripping the top of her chair, she whirled on Yuzu. "You  _told him_?"

"I was worried about you," her twin said, voice small.

Rage was starting to bubble beneath her skin, trying to claw its way out. She gripped her chair tighter. " _And you didn't think to talk to me first?!"_

"Don't yell at her," Ichigo growled, his own volume rising. "She just wants to stop you from doing something stupid."

"Oh. OH, THIS IS RICH." Karin laughed humorlessly, whipping her head between her siblings. "First of all, this is none of your fucking business, Ichi-nii. Actually, Yuzu, this is none of your business either, and you  _had no right_ —"

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR DAMN MIND?" Ichigo roared, spittle escaping his lips. He leaped out of his chair, making his way where Karin stood. "YOU CAN'T DATE A HOST. HE'S ONLY AROUND BECAUSE YOU'RE PAYING HIM!"

Despite her brother's sudden nearness, almost chest to chest, Karin did not back down, glaring up at him. "YOU DON'T KNOW HIM!" she yelled hotly.

"I DON'T HAVE TO," he shouted, eyes ablaze. "HE'S  _A HOST_! ARE YOU FUCKING INSANE?"

Karin rounded on her twin. "In what universe was this a good idea?" she hissed. " _You were the one who insisted I get with him in the first place!_ "

"But I didn't know." Yuzu's bottom lip quivered. "I didn't know that you actually liked him. I just thought—"

"OF COURSE I LIKE HIM!" the dark-haired girl exploded, slamming her hands on the table and making her sister jump at the sound. "I DON'T FUCK PEOPLE I DON'T LIKE."

Ichigo made a choking sound, his face almost purple at this point.

Karin laughed, the sound hollow and lifeless. "Oh yeah, I fucked him," she said with a sneer. "Multiple times. And it was _goooood_ —"

Ichigo was shaking his head, like he couldn't believe what was happening. Neither could she. "What is  _wrong_ with you?" he asked, voice strangled.

Karin recoiled, her gut twisting in on itself.

"Please don't be mad, Karin," Yuzu was pleading. "Do you even know anything about him? Has he even told you where he lives? It's unhealthy."

" _NO_." The word was uttered so darkly that Yuzu halted her nervous chattering, staring up at Karin with startled eyes.

"Karin-chan—"

"No. I don't have to sit here and take this." She was breathing hard out of her nose like an angry bull. "You"—she turned to Ichigo—"were too chickenshit to ask out your college TA even though we all know she's the  _love of your life_ , and now she's far away and all you do is mope about it. And  _you_ "—Yuzu flinched at her sister's sudden gaze—"choose to be in a sad excuse for a relationship, where your so-called-boyfriend treats you like shit and doesn't love you, and you _take_  it, because you're too fucking afraid of being alone. SO  _EXCUSE ME_  IF I DON'T TAKE RELATIONSHIP ADVICE FROM EITHER OF YOU!"

Her voice echoed in the sudden silence. Both Yuzu and Ichigo looked like she had punched them in the gut; Yuzu was openly weeping now.

She turned to leave. "Have a nice dinner."

Yuzu scrambled out of her chair. "Karin-chan! Please don't—"

"I've got a train to catch." It burned behind her eyes, but Karin blinked rapidly, cursing herself for being an angry crier. "I just remembered I forgot something." And she stomped out, passing a serious-faced Isshin holding a casserole dish in his oven mitts.

"Karin, what—"

She couldn't look in him in the eyes, knowing if she did, the floodgates would open. Instead, she sent a watery smile in his general direction. "Sorry, Dad."

She was halfway to the train station before she realized she had forgotten her jacket. But when she shivered, it wasn't from the cold.

~.~.~

Her phone repeatedly vibrated in her pocket on the train ride home, but Karin didn't even take it out to glance at the screen. She couldn't believe her brother and sister had teamed up on her over something that had nothing to do with them. She knew they meant well, but  _how fucking dare they_. Of fucking course they would do this when she was finally happy, never mind that their own lives were complete messes.

It wasn't until she had stomped her way up to her apartment, thrown her shoes off, and furiously stewed in front of the television for half an hour that she even bothered taking out her phone. Five missed calls, three from Yuzu and two from her dad. A text from Hitsugaya that made her smile.  _I have Thursday off. Want to go see that movie you've been talking about?_

Two texts from Yuzu.

Warily, Karin opened them. The first:  _I am so sorry. I didn't realize you liked him so much, otherwise I would have said something earlier._ The second,  _I just want you to be happy_  with a photo attached.

She recognized the shock of white hair immediately, his teal eyes sparkling with what looked like amusement. Or adoration, Karin couldn't tell. It was a look that she had been on the receiving end of multiple times, but this time it was aimed at another girl.

Karin's stomach bottomed out as she realized what she was looking at. Toshiro, walking down the street with another girl, their fingers laced together. The other girl, a soft smile playing at her lips, looking up at him affectionately. It took a moment, but she realized that the bun-haired girl in the photo and the bun-haired girl in her drunken memories were one and the same. Toshiro was dating another client.

Frozen, Karin could do nothing but stare at the photo blankly, panic slowly infiltrating her bloodstream until she abruptly stood and rushed to the bathroom, gagging. She was going to be sick.

Bile pushed at the back of her throat as she hovered over the toilet, eyes burning. She was so stupid. She was so  _fucking stupid_ , no wonder her siblings were looking at her crookedly. She had become that idiotic girl that she despised, the one that she made fun of and scoffed at.

She had fallen for a host, and played right into his money-grubbing hands. She gave him money she didn't even have, forsaking textbooks for his company. She let him touch her, let him  _fuck_  her, right in this very bathroom.

She gagged again, swallowing to combat the vomit fighting to crawl up her throat. Tears leaked out of her eyes, and she laid her forehead against the cool porcelain with a shuddering breath. She let him fuck her, when he was probably fucking everyone on his client list. She had let him inside her with no protection.

Karin couldn't stop the sob that escaped her then, tears hot on her skin.

She lay there, curled around the toilet, until her stomach settled itself. Then, feeling empty, she dragged herself back to the couch and picked up her phone.

She answered on the fourth ring, though Karin was surprised she answered at all, considering how late it was where she was. "Karin," she mumbled, clearly only partially conscious. "What's the matter? Are you okay?"

"No." Her voice was gravelly from crying. "But that's not why I'm calling."

There was a pause on the line. Karin had no doubt she was deciding whether she should pry. "Okay," she finally said.

Karin sniffed. "Please call him."

"Karin," she warned, her tone suddenly guarded.

"Rukia-nee," she pleaded. "Please. Just…he's miserable and he's too fucking stupid to do anything about it so he's always going to be miserable. Please call him.  _Please_."

Silence. They listened to each other breathe.

"…Are you sure you don't want to talk about why you're upset?"

Karin curled in on herself. "I'm sure."

Rukia exhaled. "Goodnight, Karin."

"Goodnight."

She cradled the phone to her face long after she hung up. That was the only apology her brother was getting from her.

She closed her eyes.

~.~.~

When Yuzu came home the next day, Karin hadn't moved from the couch. She heard her sister sigh, take off her shoes, and then she was there, sliding her body between Karin's and the couch back.

Yuzu wrapped her arms securely around her. "I'm sorry," she said quietly into her hair.

Karin shifted. "No I am. You were right." Hot tears hit the back of her neck, and they almost triggered another round of her own.

"So were you," Yuzu whispered.

~.~.~

Unlike her sister, Karin only gave herself two days to get it together. It was exam season, and she didn't have the luxury to lie around, feeling sorry for herself. Instead, she went to class and studied, trying hard to ignore the humiliation lurking beneath her skin.

It wasn't easy. Hitsugaya texted her enough to make her heart hurt. Little, thoughtful things that made her want to chuck her phone against the wall.

_Good luck on your exams. I know you won't need it, but I thought I'd go through the motions._

_Let me know if you need help studying. Or not studying. Ahem._

_Because you haven't responded about the movie, I guess you're swamped. Call me when you get a chance to breathe._

_Hey, are you doing okay?_

_Karin?_

It got to be too much. She was pissed off—at him, and her traitorous heart. Try as she might, she just couldn't turn her feelings off that quickly, and she found her heart skipping a beat every time his name popped up on her phone, to be followed by immediate disgust. So, to try to save her sanity, she blocked his number, and after a moment's pause, deleted it entirely.

There. Now she could move on. One day she would look fondly upon this time and laugh about how stupid she was in her youth. Hopefully by then she would be able to think of Hitsugaya without wanting to hit something.

Why she thought things would go to plan was beyond her.

Toshiro showed up a week after she stopped speaking to him. She was headed out to one of her morning classes, locking her front door, when she realized he was in the hallway, leaning against a wall.

He was dressed sharply in a suit, looking eerily the same as when she had first met him. Clearly, he had come straight from work.

He looked at her warily.

Karin swallowed, inwardly cursing his knowledge of her schedule. "What are you doing here?"

He pushed off the wall, walking closer to her. He smelled faintly of alcohol. Karin wanted to hurt him. "I kept calling, and you didn't pick up. I was worried."

"Well, no need for that," she replied airily, stepping back and widening the distance between them. "As you can see, I'm fine."

His brow furrowed, not believing her. "Karin, are you okay?"

"I will be." She smiled tightly, moving to walk around him.

He caught her by the arm. "Wait—"

She snapped, whipping back around. " _Don't touch me!_ "

Toshiro's eyes widened, startled. Obediently, he retrieved his hand.

Karin took a deep breath to calm herself, letting it out with an impatient huff. "Don't ever fucking touch me."

Why was he looking at her like that? Was he  _hurt_?

_Good_ , her mind whispered.

"This is definitely a stupid question." He shook his head, baffled. "But are you  _mad at me_?"

"No. You've never lied about who you are. I'm the one who—" Karin bit her lip, ignoring the painful twisting of her gut. "But I can't guarantee that I won't hit you if you don't get out of my way."

His gaze steeled and his jaw tightened, but still he did not listen, hand actually reaching out to touch her before he caught it and returned it to his side. "Karin—"

"What do you want from me?" she asked, voice pathetically cracking. She reached into her bag, pulling out a few bills. "Is this what you're waiting for? Is it because I still owe you this?"

"What the hell are you—"

"Take it," she snarled, throwing the money at him. He gaped at her through the falling bills, and she used the opportunity to stomp past him. She walked down the stairs without looking back. "And lose my number."

She didn't feel the satisfaction she thought she would. Instead, she felt more empty than before.

~.~.~

Yuzu came home that night with a watery smile and a new haircut. Karin hadn't seen it that short since they were in elementary school.

"What's with the new do?" she asked, looking up from her textbook. "I like it."

Yuzu joined her on the couch. "I broke up with Jinta today," she said with an air of nonchalance. Her voice still shook.

_I broke up with Toshiro_ , Karin wanted to reply, but that wasn't quite true. They were never in a relationship to begin with; Karin had just been delusional. Instead, she ruffled her sister's bangs. "Good for you."

~.~.~

When someone slid into the seat across from hers, Karin was immediately irritated. There were plenty of empty tables at the café, and there was no need for her to have to share. But when she glanced up from her book to give the other person a piece of her mind, her heart stopped in her throat.

Matsumoto Rangiku looked back at her, a carefully blank look on her face, arms crossed over her breasts. How she still managed to look like a high-fashion model in only a tshirt and jeans was beyond sense.

Karin shook her head. She thought that she had been  _done_ with all of this. "No. I can't deal with this right now, Ran."

Matsumoto tilted her head. "I'm only here to give you this," she said, sliding an envelope across the table.

"I don't want it."

"It's yours," the blond woman insisted firmly.

Cautiously, Karin flipped open the unsealed flap. And almost dropped the envelope when she saw all the money inside.

"It's all there," Matsumoto said, tone flippant. "Taicho never kept your money. He paid the club himself. He wasn't sure how to casually give the money back to you, but figured now was as good a time as any."

Karin wasn't sure what to do with that admission, so she just looked between Matsumoto and the money with wide eyes.

"I'm supposed to leave now, but I'm not quite finished with you yet." The bartender leaned back in her chair. "Do you know why Taicho is a host in the first place?"

It was strange seeing the blonde so serious, especially since she was usually full of smiles and liquor. But Karin found herself unable to ignore her presence, as if she owed her her attention. And maybe she did. "…No."

"His grandmother is sick." Her grey eyes pierced into hers. "After he graduated high school, he was supposed to go to college overseas. But his grandmother fell ill. It's just the two of them, you see. She was the one who raised him, and he couldn't bring himself to leave her. They weren't financially stable to begin with, but the hospital bills started stacking up quickly. So I got him a job at Seireitei because hosts make a lot of money."

Karin swallowed. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because I'm notorious for not minding my own business." Matsumoto sighed. "Taicho's going to be pissed. Listen, I'll be the first person to tell you that dating a host is a bad idea. That they're liars and swindlers and will only break your heart. I know that firsthand."

Karin raised a brow, but didn't say anything.

"But Taicho isn't like that. He's the most honorable person I've met in my life, and he's loyal to a fault. And I've never seen him as happy as he has been these past few months."

"…He's been dating other women," Karin protested, her face hot with embarrassment.

"He's a host," Matsumoto reminded her gently. "He dates whoever pays him. But he still dated you." She tapped Karin's envelope pointedly. "And you never paid him."

Well, now she felt like complete shit. Just when she thought she would finally be rid of the gnawing feeling in her belly, it came back full-force, making her question whether it had ever truly left.

"Taicho is a good man," Matsumoto continued with a soft smile. She stood. "And that's all I wanted to say. Have a good day, Red-chan."

As she watched the blonde leave, Karin pushed her book away. She was officially too upset to study.


	7. Chapter 7

For the second time that week, Yuzu walked in on Karin lying prostrate on their couch. "What happened?" she asked, baffled.

"Hitsugaya Toshiro is an asshole," Karin mumbled into the cushions.

"I thought we had already established that." The light-haired twin lifted her sister's feet, sat in the spot they vacated, and put them in her lap.

"Yeah," Karin sighed, "but now he's an asshole who loves his granny."

Yuzu pursed her lips. "Are you going to speak in riddles or…?"

So Karin told her the whole story. Yuzu's eyes got wide when she saw the money-filled envelope. "So?" Karin prodded. "What do you think?"

Yuzu cleared her throat and looked at her guiltily. "I think…I might have been wrong about him."

Karin balked, sitting up. "Are you kidding? He may be doing all of this for his grandmother, but that doesn't excuse what he did to me!"

"And what exactly did he do? Give you all your money back? Take you on dates and pay for everything? Watch soccer with you?" She smiled knowingly. "Sleep with you? According to you, it was  _good_ —"

"Just whose side are you on, anyway," Karin interrupted. "He also slept with everyone else under the sun. He probably slept with you too."

"No, he skipped me. What a shame." At Karin's dark look, Yuzu smothered her smile. "Okay, I'll be serious. I think you like him."

" _Obviously_. What are you trying to say, Yuzu?"

"I'm saying, you really like him, and we might have misjudged him, so now you feel like crap. I know  _I_  feel horrible, but you…you're trying to stick to his made-up faults to lessen your guilt."

Karin started at her twin's astute observation, but remained quiet.

"I'm not saying your anger is invalid," Yuzu continued thoughtfully. "It's possible we were both right about him the first time. But on the off-chance that we weren't, and he's an asshole who really likes you…I think you should talk to him. Did you ever try to hear his side of things?"

"…No." She bit her lip. "And I don't know if he'll even want to talk to me now."

"I'm sorry," Yuzu breathed.

Karin shook her head. "It's not your fault. You were just trying to look out for me, and this was going to happen eventually." She groaned. "But you're right. I need him to be an asshole, because if not, I majorly fucked up."

Yuzu patted her knee. "It wouldn't be the first time."

Karin shoved her, unable to stop her lips from quirking.

~.~.~

That night, Karin had a moment of panic when she remembered that she had deleted Hitsugaya's number. Cursing her fiery temper and rash decisions, she groaned pathetically into her mattress. Not that he would answer her calls anyway. And it's not like she knew where he lived.

She sat up abruptly with sudden inspiration. She no longer had Hitsugaya's number, but she still had Taicho's. Nervously, she scrolled through her contacts and tapped the call button.

_"I'm sorry, but the number you are trying to reach has been disconnected."_

She stared at the phone for a long time.

~.~.~

She didn't know where he lived. She didn't have his phone number. But she did know where he worked, and she knew his schedule. So, armed with some of her returned money in case Seireitei's guard dog yapped at her, Karin again found herself at the club she never dreamed she would become a regular at.

It was early, so there weren't that many people there. Still, as expected, Nanao was, immediately meeting her at the door and eying her suspiciously. "Welcome to Seireitei."

"Is Taicho here?" Karin asked, no nonsense. "I just need to talk to him. I have money—"

Nanao put up a hand, stopping her in her tracks. "Taicho no longer works here."

That explained the disconnected phone. Karin's stomach dropped. "Since when?"

The woman's lips pursed. "I understand he was your host, and this is unfortunate. May I interest you in someone else?"

Karin ran a hand through her ponytail, irritated. "No,  _he's_  the one I need to speak with. Do you have a number I could reach him at?"

"It is against policy to give out the hosts' information."

"Well is Rangiku-san here?"

"Matsumoto-san is currently out of town."

She had to be shitting her. There was no way the universe was actively fucking her over. But from the serious, sympathetic way Nanao was looking at her, the bespectacled woman wasn't lying.

"I give up," Karin snarled, making Nanao's eyebrows reach for her hairline in response. She turned to leave. "No one can say I didn't try."

~.~.~

The next few weeks passed in a mind-numbing blur. After striking out at the host club, Karin had no spare time to feel sorry for herself. Exam season was here, and she spent most of her time cramming, self-medicating herself with caffeine, passing out amongst her notes, and taking tests. She felt nothing but relief when it was all over and she made it to the other side. Well, that and exhaustion, both mentally and physically.

And she wasn't the only one. To celebrate the fact that they had all passed, her friends Akiyama and Himura dragged her out to dinner, even though all she truly wanted was to pass out in her bed for a few days.

"You can do that after dinner," Ryota retorted.

"Yeah. There's this new place we need to try out," Aki added. "Besides, we don't have that much time left."

"What are you talking about," Karin grumbled, following the boys down the street anyway.

"We passed our exams." Aki looked at her meaningfully. "After this, we only have one more year left."

One more year, and then she would be entering medical school and they would all be going their separate ways. Inwardly, she conceded their point. Outwardly, she grinned, hooking an arm around each of their necks. "When did you two get so sappy?"

She prodded their fragile male egos all the way to the restaurant, which was relatively busy when they entered and were seated by the hostess.

"How's Yuzu?" Ryota asked, idly tearing his straw wrapper into tiny little pieces.

"A lot better." Karin sipped her straw thoughtfully. "Huh. You like my sister, don't you?"

He sputtered, turning a satisfying shade of scarlet. "I-I don't—"

"You should ask her out," Karin said offhandedly, smirking. "She's single now."

His mouth dropped open before he could catch it, and he looked away, muttering to himself.

Karin and Aki caught each other's eyes, sniggering at their friend.

"Welcome to Taka's. May I take your order?"

Her laugh died in her throat. She knew that voice. Intimately. And turning her head only confirmed it—Hitsugaya Toshiro stood before their table, clad in the restaurant's waiter uniform. Karin compulsively swallowed.

He looked exactly as she remembered. Teal eyes casually met hers beneath his black-rimmed glasses. His shock of white hair was a lot flatter without all the hairspray, but she found she liked this style better. And she couldn't lie—the uniform looked great on him, the bow-tie only reminding her how good he looked in a suit. And out of it.

She coughed.

"Hey," Aki said slowly. Narrowing his eyes in thought. "Haven't we met you before?"

"Possibly," Hitsugaya replied flippantly. "I recommend the house special. It's very popular."

But, to her embarrassment, Karin's friends weren't so easily thrown off. "I remember," Ryota said brightly. "You're Karin's friend, right?" Pointing a thumb at her for good measure. "We met at the bar a little while ago and watched the game?"

Hitsugaya's eyes settled on her again, disinterested, before looking away. "It's nice to see you again. What can I get for you?"

They all ordered, Karin croaking out the first thing on the menu her eyes landed on. Hitsugaya wrote it all down on his notepad, then, with a slight bow, left them.

Karin was baffled. Her friends weren't far behind, turning to her with interest.

"What was  _that_?"

"He completely ignored you. Did you have a fight or something?"

"Or something," she muttered, jaw set.

Aki grinned. "Think he's going to spit in our food?"

Karin gave him a well-earned shove, before scrambling out of her chair and heading towards the bathroom. She needed some space to think about these new developments.

But she didn't quite make it. The door to the kitchen swung out, blocking her path to the restroom, and suddenly, there he was again, holding a tray full of beverages. "T-Toshiro," she stammered in surprise.

His face was blank. "Did you need something, miss?" he asked politely.  _Distantly_.

Indignant, her stomach twisted. "What are you doing here?"

He looked pointedly at his tray. "I work here, miss."

"Stop that," she snapped. "I need to talk to you."

"I'll be at your table shortly," he replied, walking past her. "Don't worry. Your meal should be ready soon."

She watched him walk away with a look of disbelief. She seethed.

~.~.~

She was prickly the whole rest of the dinner, glaring at their waiter every time he was within range, stabbing her food with her chopsticks before gnashing it with her teeth, and generally being visibly pissed off.

Her friends clearly found the whole thing amusing, but were smart enough not to get in the middle of  _that_. When Hitsugaya courteously refilled their drinks and asked whether he could get them anything else, Karin gave him a look that could wither any vegetation within a five-mile radius. He merely met her glower head-on with a respectful cock of his head. It  _infuriated_ her.

"No, thank you," Aki answered, glee clear in his voice. But when Karin turned to sic her Kurosaki Glare on him, he didn't spare a look in her direction. Say what you want about Akiyama, but he wasn't stupid.

Finally, after a tense hour or so, the current bane of her existence handed them the check. "Thank you for your business," he said with a slight bow, and then, without a second look in her direction, he left them.

Karin was livid.

"Damn," Ryota mused. "That must have been some fight you had."

Aki snickered. "What are you going to do?"

Karin tapped her fingers against the tabletop agitatedly. "I'm going to make him talk to me, that's what."

"And how are you going to do that?" Aki demanded.

"Maybe you should back off the murderous vibes just a little." Ryota grinned. "I would avoid you too."

She stood, slipping her jacket on. "He's got to leave the restaurant sometime."

Her friends shared a look.  _Damn_. "Are you  _sure_  you guys aren't a thing?" hedged Ryota.

She sent them a startling smile. More like baring her teeth. "You boys just mind your business."

~.~.~

So that's how Karin found herself outside, leaning against the restaurant, watching the people who came out of the employee entrance like a hawk. Late evening turned to twilight turned to night, and still she stood, her rage slowly brewing.

She was being ridiculous.  _She_  was the one who broke up with  _him_ , but the fact that he was ignoring her made her seethe. She had gotten what she thought she wanted, but now she wasn't so sure that she had actually wanted it, so she was standing outside in the night chill for an hour and a half, waiting for him like a lunatic. It was nonsensical and she hated it and  _she was pissed_.

When he finally exited the doors, hair glowing under the streetlights, her blood was thrumming loudly in her ears.

He startled at the sight of her, eyes widening slightly before narrowing. "Karin? What are you…?"

"Oh," she said airily. "So you  _do_  remember me."

He scoffed, turning away from her. Walking away. "I don't have time for this."

She followed him as he cut through an alley, matching his pace. "Really?" she retorted. "I suggest you  _make_  time."

"Go home, Karin."

"Not until you talk to me." She placed a hand on his arm and he halted, every muscle in his body tensing. He turned his head and looked at her sharply, eyes glinting ethereally in the moonlight. Dangerously.

She set her jaw, removing her hand but sticking to her guns. "Why do you work at that restaurant, Toshiro?"

"Because I need money and they pay me," he said tightly. "Why else would someone get a job?"

"But you already  _had_  a job!"

"I didn't have the heart for that one anymore," he said flatly. "And they pay me well here. Now are we done?"

" _No_ , we're not done!" she snapped. "We need to—"

And then he was there, body flush against hers, breathing heavily against her hair. She blinked owlishly, mind slowly catching up, back stinging slightly from the way it had scraped along the brick wall he had suddenly pushed her against.

"This is what you want, right?" he asked harshly, hand creeping beneath her skirt and meeting her already soaked panties. She turned her head, embarrassed at her body's traitorous reaction, but he merely cupped her through the fabric, face stone, watching her hiss through her teeth. Ground the heel of his palm against her clit. _"Right?"_

She grunted in response, unable to halt the snap of her hips.

He tilted his head, jaw tight. Hooked a finger beneath her underwear and entered her. She was wet,  _so_ wet, and the finger slid into her easily, so he added another, and then a third, pumping into her, raking her walls, both of them breathing raggedly.

Karin could do nothing but bite her lip, trying to muffle her sounds so no curious passersby wandered into their dark corner of the world. Her stance widened of its own accord, her thighs parting for him, and she bore down, meeting his upward thrusts, fighting to get him even farther inside of her. She watched him watching her, eyes dark with an emotion she couldn't immediately identify, and when he hit a particularly pleasurable spot, a groan escaped her throat and her hands reached for him.

He froze when her arms wrapped around his neck, fingers winding through his hair; when she folded a leg around his hip, making their pelvises more pleasurably aligned. When she ground against him, right along his aching shaft, the breath caught in his throat, his fingers momentarily slipping out of her. But then his eyes steeled, and his fingers were back with a vengeance, pounding into  _that_  spot again and again, scissoring, knocking the breath out of her, making her eyes cross. Making a noticeable wet sound as he passed in and out of her.

"This is what you wanted, isn't it?" he rasped against her throat, tongue leaving a burning trail on her skin until he caught her earlobe with his teeth. He bit down sharply, making her gasp. " _Isn't it?_ "

"Ah." She clawed at him, unable to form coherent sentences. " _Ahhh…_ "

His breath was hot against her cheek. "The only thing you wanted me for," she heard him whisper, and her eyes snapped to his, startled.

And suddenly, she was able to identify the emotion simmering beneath the depths of his eyes, the fire in his stare. He was furious.

"I—" she gasped, but then she couldn't get enough air and she was writhing against him, bucking against his hand, muscles clamping down so hard it was almost painful.

Hitsugaya watched passively, lips slightly parted, fingers still enveloped by her dripping sex. Still petting her, even as her muscles fought to keep him immobile inside, even as he calmly placed his other hand over her mouth to muffle her increasingly loud choking.

When Karin did came down from her climax, spots in the corners of her vision, her whole body lax, he finally slid out of her. His fingers glistened in the low lighting and, mouth in a straight line, he wiped them on the front of his black dress pants, leaving behind a noticeable smear.

"There," he said gruffly, looking away,  _backing_  away from her and creating several feet between them. "You got what you came for so just… _go_."

Karin gaped at him, regret warm and sticky between her thighs.  _"What—"_

"Just—" He met her eyes, and immediately his stone mask crumbled, leaving anger and disgust in its wake. His foot shot out, connecting hard with a trashcan, the metal reverberating in Karin's stunned silence.  _"SHIT!"_  He ran a hand through his hair, kicked it again.  _"FUCK!"_

For a few moments, she just looked at him, mouth opening and closing. Then, she took a step towards him. "What did you mean?" she asked quietly. "When you said that was the only thing I wanted you for?"

"Exactly what I said," he spat bitterly, eyes ablaze. "You use me as your plaything when you're in the mood and throw me away when you're finished with me. And I would be okay with that but I'm pretty sure I'm falling in love with you and—" He clanked his mouth shut, deflating tiredly. "You know what, it doesn't matter. I'll get over it. Just…leave me alone."

Karin's mind raced, practically knocked on her ass. "You think I want you for your body?" she asked, in complete disbelief.

"You think I want you for your money," he retorted. "So let's just call it even."

She stepped closer to him, closing the distance, the toes of her shoes almost touching his. "My sister caught you and another customer on a date," she said defensively. "I figured you were fucking her too!"

He looked baffled. "If I went on a date with her, she  _paid_  me to. I  _never_  sleep with clients." He let out a whoosh of air. "Except for you, apparently."

"Oh," she said, her voice small. Her blood thrummed excitedly, but she ignored it. "Well, Rangiku-san told me I was wrong, and I've been looking for you ever since. Not because I wanted you to finger me in an alley, by the way. Because I wanted to apologize." She swallowed. "And because I think I love you too."

His eyes widened. "Oh," he breathed.

"Yeah," she murmured with a humorless laugh.  _"Oh."_

They stared at each other in the dim light, cars driving by and the far away shrieking of sirens the only sounds permeating the silence. He reached for her, hands settling on her waist and feeling like they had never left, lips cautiously seeking hers.

She breathed him in, the kiss suddenly edged with a touch of desperation, feeling his heart race beneath her fingertips as she peppered his jawline with the brush of her lips.

And then he ended it, resting his forehead against hers, eyes closed. "I'm sorry," he sighed.

"No, I am. Can we just…" She licked her lips. "Can we just…start over?"

His lips quirked into the semblance of a smile that she loved so much. He nodded.

~.~.~

"Do you mind if I sit here?"

The young woman looked up from her magazine, eyeing the man in front of her. He wore slim-fitted jeans and a black and white button-up, tufts of snowy hair peeking out beneath his green beanie. His glasses made him look intelligent, and the woman liked that.

"Sure," she said, and although there were plenty of empty tables around her, she gestured toward the seat across from hers with her latte.

He sat, taking a sip from his own coffee. "Tokyo U." He nodded at her sweatshirt. "What do you study?"

"I'm pre-med," she replied, gathering her long dark hair into a messy ponytail. "Do you go there?"

"I plan to. I saved some money up, so I start in the fall."

She smiled. "Do you know what field you want to study?"

His eyes smiled back. "Genetics."

"Very cool." She reached her hand across the table, and he took it. "Kurosaki Karin, by the way. Nice to meet you."

"Hitsugaya Toshiro." They shook, and then he angled his hand differently, lacing their fingers together and rubbing slow circles into her palm with his thumb.

Karin raised a brow. "So, Hitsugaya Toshiro. How do you feel about fingering girls in alleys?" Burst out laughing at the look on his face.

Hitsugaya scowled, but that only made her laugh harder, and in the end, he couldn't help the smile that crept onto his own lips. "I enjoy it," he said casually, relishing the way the laughter died on her lips. "Immensely."

Karin's eyebrows reached for her hairline, simultaneously stunned and amused at his gall.

"Well then," she smirked, "I think you and I are going to get along just fine."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's all, folks! :D
> 
> That last smut scene wasn't supposed to be there but then I mentioned to Adobo-chan that I kinda felt like writing more smut but it didn't fit with the story, and she was all, "wtf do you mean it doesn't fit with the story it always fits with the story after that last chapter you owe me smut excuse you". So I just kind of shrugged and went, "Well, it's her story" (like I didn't want to write it in the first place LMAO) and angry!sexytimes was born. Because she's absolutely right. You can always make smut fit LOL
> 
> Anyway, I hope you all felt the same way reading this as I did writing it and being stuck in this world for a year (mildly irritated, but overall giddy and obsessed). Now that this is over, I plan to get back to Rapture. :D
> 
> Be sure to leave me a review on your way out and let me know what you thought!


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